ECHO COMMENT: Saints must move to head off fans' mutiny

The countdown to the closing of the transfer window normally starts to gather pace in the final hours before it slams shut, but in Saints’ case the clock is ticking louder and louder every day.

Whatever the debates over the rights and wrongs of the decision to sell so many of last season’s stand out players this summer, there is one thing over which there can be no argument – Saints need some signings in the door. And fast.

Before the end of last season, before we knew so many players would depart St Mary’s for pastures new this summer, we were already talking of the need for three or four more quality signings just to give the club the chance to stand still.

There were a few areas in which even that squad were clearly short and needed strengthening. Even Mauricio Pochettino, who preferred to work with a small squad, said on several occasions the pool from which he had to select from lacked sufficient depth.

Since then Adam Lallana, Luke Shaw, Rickie Lambert, Dejan Lovren and Calum Chambers have all disappeared, while even the likes of Guly do Prado, hardly a first team starter but a regular sub, has gone too. It’s not a colossal loss but another body out the door.

Only Dusan Tadic and Graziano Pelle have come in. To say that is not enough is the understatement of the year.

Saints have looked to be on the back foot over all of this.

They seem able to sell players quickly but bringing them appears a painstaking process as negotiations drag on interminably.

That needs to change.

Even assuming nobody else goes, and at this point in time that does feel like a very optimistic assumption, they probably still need half a dozen players.

They have lost a huge amount of top level experience and knowhow this summer and it has to be replaced.

Saints cannot get by only signing players foreign players who have not played in the division before. Experienced Premier League players might well cost more but the club have brought in plenty of money.

They will also be wary of blowing the lid off of a wage structure, afraid it will unsettle ‘The Southampton Way’.

But most fans never want to hear the club utter that phrase again. ‘The Southampton Way’ as it was explained is not what has happened this summer and the sooner the club ditch that cringe worthy catchphrase the better. It is too reactionary to say Saints will struggle next season, but Ronald Koeman has to have some time to work with a near full squad.

It is absolutely vital given the structure of the fixture list that Saints get off to a good start and this pre-season already looks disjointed enough.

There have been calls for members of the board to come out and give interviews to reassure the fans.

But what will truly ease the fans’ nerves is to make some signings.

Saints have been made to look somewhat naive in their handling of this summer – by other clubs and their own wantaway players – and that needs to change.

If Saints are to prevent the next season from feeling like a very long and arduous one, then they need to make the coming days and weeks count like never before.

[quote][p][bold]miltonarcher[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]deepheat[/bold] wrote:
Any club sold a whole team before?
This team played in a starting XI last season.
Boruc - might want to go if we sign Forster?
Shaw - Gone
Lovren - Gone
Fonte - In negotiations
Chambers - Gone
Rodriguez - In negotiations
Morgan - In negotiations
Cork - In negotiations
Lallana - Gone
Osvaldo - In negotiations
Lambert - Gone[/p][/quote]Rumours that a Prem club is tracking Clyne.[/p][/quote]money on it that its liverhamptonTGodSFC

miltonarcher wrote…

deepheat wrote…

Any club sold a whole team before?
This team played in a starting XI last season.

Why is everyone so obsessed with going out and buying replacement players? Let's not follow up a fire sale with panic buying. I don't think any of these players should have been sold but we still have a core of committed players who worked really hard for Saints last season. They may not have been everyone's first choice but they are on the whole premier league quality and a whole load of new players is not going to help.

We have replaced Lambert with what looks like a quality signing in Pelle and Gallagher is a good prospect.

In midfield, we replaced Lallana with Tadic plus we still have Ward-Prowse, Reed, Davis and Cork. If we lose Schneiderlin, Wanyama can take his place - sure, Schneiderlin is difficult to replace but Wanyama had a good start to last season before his injury.

In defence, Targett will take over from Shaw and may possibly become an even better player. Clyne has proved he is as good if not better than Chambers. No guarantee we can find a better keeper than Boruc, even if he makes a few mistakes from time to time. We definitely need a quality centre half to replace Lovren but Yoshida is not so bad.

Many of the players who are left have played and fought for Saints during one of the most successful periods in our history so let's give them - together with a couple of quality signings and some academy players - a chance. We may not get to 8th place again but let's not make things worse by overpaying for new players and upsetting the mentality of the squad even further. I agree strength in depth will become an issue but we have until the end of August to make sure we make the right signings based on what Koeman sees during pre-season and the first few fixtures.

Very disappointed by what's going on and not clear why Reed and Krueger cannot give more information and communication to the fans. They could try to make the case for what's happening and instead everyone's speculating. The Cortese regime looks more open.

Why is everyone so obsessed with going out and buying replacement players? Let's not follow up a fire sale with panic buying. I don't think any of these players should have been sold but we still have a core of committed players who worked really hard for Saints last season. They may not have been everyone's first choice but they are on the whole premier league quality and a whole load of new players is not going to help.
We have replaced Lambert with what looks like a quality signing in Pelle and Gallagher is a good prospect.
In midfield, we replaced Lallana with Tadic plus we still have Ward-Prowse, Reed, Davis and Cork. If we lose Schneiderlin, Wanyama can take his place - sure, Schneiderlin is difficult to replace but Wanyama had a good start to last season before his injury.
In defence, Targett will take over from Shaw and may possibly become an even better player. Clyne has proved he is as good if not better than Chambers. No guarantee we can find a better keeper than Boruc, even if he makes a few mistakes from time to time. We definitely need a quality centre half to replace Lovren but Yoshida is not so bad.
Many of the players who are left have played and fought for Saints during one of the most successful periods in our history so let's give them - together with a couple of quality signings and some academy players - a chance. We may not get to 8th place again but let's not make things worse by overpaying for new players and upsetting the mentality of the squad even further. I agree strength in depth will become an issue but we have until the end of August to make sure we make the right signings based on what Koeman sees during pre-season and the first few fixtures.
Very disappointed by what's going on and not clear why Reed and Krueger cannot give more information and communication to the fans. They could try to make the case for what's happening and instead everyone's speculating. The Cortese regime looks more open.GP19Saint

Why is everyone so obsessed with going out and buying replacement players? Let's not follow up a fire sale with panic buying. I don't think any of these players should have been sold but we still have a core of committed players who worked really hard for Saints last season. They may not have been everyone's first choice but they are on the whole premier league quality and a whole load of new players is not going to help.

We have replaced Lambert with what looks like a quality signing in Pelle and Gallagher is a good prospect.

In midfield, we replaced Lallana with Tadic plus we still have Ward-Prowse, Reed, Davis and Cork. If we lose Schneiderlin, Wanyama can take his place - sure, Schneiderlin is difficult to replace but Wanyama had a good start to last season before his injury.

In defence, Targett will take over from Shaw and may possibly become an even better player. Clyne has proved he is as good if not better than Chambers. No guarantee we can find a better keeper than Boruc, even if he makes a few mistakes from time to time. We definitely need a quality centre half to replace Lovren but Yoshida is not so bad.

Many of the players who are left have played and fought for Saints during one of the most successful periods in our history so let's give them - together with a couple of quality signings and some academy players - a chance. We may not get to 8th place again but let's not make things worse by overpaying for new players and upsetting the mentality of the squad even further. I agree strength in depth will become an issue but we have until the end of August to make sure we make the right signings based on what Koeman sees during pre-season and the first few fixtures.

Very disappointed by what's going on and not clear why Reed and Krueger cannot give more information and communication to the fans. They could try to make the case for what's happening and instead everyone's speculating. The Cortese regime looks more open.

Score: -1

Stnana
2:06pm Tue 29 Jul 14

the cowman wrote…

BarnetSaint wrote…

In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.

Anyone who advocates new ownership had best be careful what they wish for. There is no guarantee that any new owner would have passion, commitment and financial clout. Ask Cardiff and Hull fans what they think of their owners.
Nicola had his wings clipped and did not like it so moved on. The chances of finding someone like Nicola who had their own money instead of someone else's is pretty slim.
I think it is far to early to judge what has happened at the club, the players want to leave in droves, I think partly because the dream they were sold is almost impossible to achieve with the Saints, but for most it has nothing to do with winning things its about bank balances. Everyone apart from Rickie has gone for cash. If Morgan and Jay go to Spurs it won't be to win things, because how many trophies have Spurs won in the last few years.

Agree with what you say but don't run away with the idea that Rickie was any different to the other money grabbers. His salary increased from £35,000 to £40,000 a week, a cool half a million over the course of a 2 year contract. As he has said ( Liverpool Echo )now he'll get to sit out some matchs as he found playing every week at Saints too much even for nearly £2million a year ! He may have said the right things when he left but he was no more loyal than the others .He forgot that , just the same as Lallana and Shaw , everything he has and is he owes to Southampton FC and it seems most on here have forgotten that too . Thanks Strassie for the translation.

[quote][p][bold]the cowman[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]BarnetSaint[/bold] wrote:
In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.[/p][/quote]Anyone who advocates new ownership had best be careful what they wish for. There is no guarantee that any new owner would have passion, commitment and financial clout. Ask Cardiff and Hull fans what they think of their owners.
Nicola had his wings clipped and did not like it so moved on. The chances of finding someone like Nicola who had their own money instead of someone else's is pretty slim.
I think it is far to early to judge what has happened at the club, the players want to leave in droves, I think partly because the dream they were sold is almost impossible to achieve with the Saints, but for most it has nothing to do with winning things its about bank balances. Everyone apart from Rickie has gone for cash. If Morgan and Jay go to Spurs it won't be to win things, because how many trophies have Spurs won in the last few years.[/p][/quote]Agree with what you say but don't run away with the idea that Rickie was any different to the other money grabbers. His salary increased from £35,000 to £40,000 a week, a cool half a million over the course of a 2 year contract. As he has said ( Liverpool Echo )now he'll get to sit out some matchs as he found playing every week at Saints too much even for nearly £2million a year ! He may have said the right things when he left but he was no more loyal than the others .He forgot that , just the same as Lallana and Shaw , everything he has and is he owes to Southampton FC and it seems most on here have forgotten that too . Thanks Strassie for the translation.Stnana

the cowman wrote…

BarnetSaint wrote…

In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.

Anyone who advocates new ownership had best be careful what they wish for. There is no guarantee that any new owner would have passion, commitment and financial clout. Ask Cardiff and Hull fans what they think of their owners.
Nicola had his wings clipped and did not like it so moved on. The chances of finding someone like Nicola who had their own money instead of someone else's is pretty slim.
I think it is far to early to judge what has happened at the club, the players want to leave in droves, I think partly because the dream they were sold is almost impossible to achieve with the Saints, but for most it has nothing to do with winning things its about bank balances. Everyone apart from Rickie has gone for cash. If Morgan and Jay go to Spurs it won't be to win things, because how many trophies have Spurs won in the last few years.

Agree with what you say but don't run away with the idea that Rickie was any different to the other money grabbers. His salary increased from £35,000 to £40,000 a week, a cool half a million over the course of a 2 year contract. As he has said ( Liverpool Echo )now he'll get to sit out some matchs as he found playing every week at Saints too much even for nearly £2million a year ! He may have said the right things when he left but he was no more loyal than the others .He forgot that , just the same as Lallana and Shaw , everything he has and is he owes to Southampton FC and it seems most on here have forgotten that too . Thanks Strassie for the translation.

Score: 6

OSPREYSAINT
1:11pm Tue 29 Jul 14

Invidia wrote…

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Invidia wrote…

The only positive that I can see in all this mayhem is that Osprey is in his element and trying to answer every post on here but with so man posts is failing miserably, he is certainly enjoying this disaster.

Have to take the dog out occasionally so not as quicks as I would have liked, but to say I am enjoying it, is on a par with saying that the neggies are unhappy to be trolling out their type of tripe.

Why in your words "the neggie's trolling out tripe", are you suggesting that their opinions mean nothing and your opinion is the only one that is worth considering, not that you appear to have any opinions of our own just trying to be funny with other peoples, you even copied my post from yesterday when it would have been far easier to have used the quote button. I am beginning to believe that an Osprey is another name for a Shitehawk.

It rather depends on what you consider to be a neggie, they know who they are, I don't need to point them out individually. Some mean well, others don't, it isn't easy to tell, so if a message is perceived to be down beat that's negative, it doesn't have to be disingenuous, it can be factually accurate yet still be depressing to a dedicated happy clapper. There is no dishonour in the present circumstances to be saying things we don't want to hear, I appreciate the wake up call as long as it isn't overdone and is purely done to point out the shortcomings, which to tell you the truth we are aware of but just rather not hear repeated over and over again as if it something to trumpeted to the rest of the world. Not helping our ongoing reputation of being a Premier laughing stock. There is really no justification in calling me names either is there? If it gives you some kind of self satisfaction carry on, I have broad shoulders and no doubt I will be called lots of things before I'm done.

[quote][p][bold]Invidia[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Invidia[/bold] wrote:
The only positive that I can see in all this mayhem is that Osprey is in his element and trying to answer every post on here but with so man posts is failing miserably, he is certainly enjoying this disaster.[/p][/quote]Have to take the dog out occasionally so not as quicks as I would have liked, but to say I am enjoying it, is on a par with saying that the neggies are unhappy to be trolling out their type of tripe.[/p][/quote]Why in your words "the neggie's trolling out tripe", are you suggesting that their opinions mean nothing and your opinion is the only one that is worth considering, not that you appear to have any opinions of our own just trying to be funny with other peoples, you even copied my post from yesterday when it would have been far easier to have used the quote button. I am beginning to believe that an Osprey is another name for a Shitehawk.[/p][/quote]It rather depends on what you consider to be a neggie, they know who they are, I don't need to point them out individually. Some mean well, others don't, it isn't easy to tell, so if a message is perceived to be down beat that's negative, it doesn't have to be disingenuous, it can be factually accurate yet still be depressing to a dedicated happy clapper. There is no dishonour in the present circumstances to be saying things we don't want to hear, I appreciate the wake up call as long as it isn't overdone and is purely done to point out the shortcomings, which to tell you the truth we are aware of but just rather not hear repeated over and over again as if it something to trumpeted to the rest of the world. Not helping our ongoing reputation of being a Premier laughing stock. There is really no justification in calling me names either is there? If it gives you some kind of self satisfaction carry on, I have broad shoulders and no doubt I will be called lots of things before I'm done.OSPREYSAINT

Invidia wrote…

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Invidia wrote…

The only positive that I can see in all this mayhem is that Osprey is in his element and trying to answer every post on here but with so man posts is failing miserably, he is certainly enjoying this disaster.

Have to take the dog out occasionally so not as quicks as I would have liked, but to say I am enjoying it, is on a par with saying that the neggies are unhappy to be trolling out their type of tripe.

Why in your words "the neggie's trolling out tripe", are you suggesting that their opinions mean nothing and your opinion is the only one that is worth considering, not that you appear to have any opinions of our own just trying to be funny with other peoples, you even copied my post from yesterday when it would have been far easier to have used the quote button. I am beginning to believe that an Osprey is another name for a Shitehawk.

It rather depends on what you consider to be a neggie, they know who they are, I don't need to point them out individually. Some mean well, others don't, it isn't easy to tell, so if a message is perceived to be down beat that's negative, it doesn't have to be disingenuous, it can be factually accurate yet still be depressing to a dedicated happy clapper. There is no dishonour in the present circumstances to be saying things we don't want to hear, I appreciate the wake up call as long as it isn't overdone and is purely done to point out the shortcomings, which to tell you the truth we are aware of but just rather not hear repeated over and over again as if it something to trumpeted to the rest of the world. Not helping our ongoing reputation of being a Premier laughing stock. There is really no justification in calling me names either is there? If it gives you some kind of self satisfaction carry on, I have broad shoulders and no doubt I will be called lots of things before I'm done.

Score: 1

The Rise of The Foot Soldier.
8:49am Tue 29 Jul 14

Seedhouse the Unrepentant wrote…

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?

THE EUROPEAN DREAM IS WELL AND TRULY OVER - at least for now and the FIGHT from League one has been TORPEDOED by accidental Owner and Billionairess Katherina and Ex Ice Hockey - now Chairman Ralph Krueger.

GET ON THE TELEPHONE TO DE SPORTS SECTION - TICKET OFFICE - AND SKY TV PORTS SECTION and make your feelings known and Voices heard THIS MORNING.

PROTEST : 1 Hour before Bayer Leverkusen Game and at Brighton Away - be vocal and show that as Fans WE CARE ABOUT THE PLIGHT OF THIS CLUB.

COYR+WS

[quote][p][bold]Seedhouse the Unrepentant[/bold] wrote:
Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?[/p][/quote]THE EUROPEAN DREAM IS WELL AND TRULY OVER - at least for now and the FIGHT from League one has been TORPEDOED by accidental Owner and Billionairess Katherina and Ex Ice Hockey - now Chairman Ralph Krueger.
GET ON THE TELEPHONE TO DE SPORTS SECTION - TICKET OFFICE - AND SKY TV PORTS SECTION and make your feelings known and Voices heard THIS MORNING.
PROTEST : 1 Hour before Bayer Leverkusen Game and at Brighton Away - be vocal and show that as Fans WE CARE ABOUT THE PLIGHT OF THIS CLUB.
COYR+WSThe Rise of The Foot Soldier.

Seedhouse the Unrepentant wrote…

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?

THE EUROPEAN DREAM IS WELL AND TRULY OVER - at least for now and the FIGHT from League one has been TORPEDOED by accidental Owner and Billionairess Katherina and Ex Ice Hockey - now Chairman Ralph Krueger.

GET ON THE TELEPHONE TO DE SPORTS SECTION - TICKET OFFICE - AND SKY TV PORTS SECTION and make your feelings known and Voices heard THIS MORNING.

PROTEST : 1 Hour before Bayer Leverkusen Game and at Brighton Away - be vocal and show that as Fans WE CARE ABOUT THE PLIGHT OF THIS CLUB.

Absolutely. And with Isgrove,Reed, Gallagher, Stephens,Kelvin, Turbull,McQueen, Rowe, Mayuka ...even Sharpe to fill the bench, it could be worse... And we'll surely bring in a minimum of 3 players in the next fortnight... I'm quietly confident these boys will do well.. More concerned about the long term effect of us selling these kids after 1-2 good seasons., but won't know if this year is a one off or not until that time comes..

And Gaston, obviously

[quote][p][bold]BracknellSaint[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
Boruc. Clyne , Yoshida, Fonte, Targett, Wanyama, Cork, JWP, Davis, Tadic, Pelle. isn't a bad starting XI if they all turned up and played 100%.[/p][/quote]Absolutely. And with Isgrove,Reed, Gallagher, Stephens,Kelvin, Turbull,McQueen, Rowe, Mayuka ...even Sharpe to fill the bench, it could be worse... And we'll surely bring in a minimum of 3 players in the next fortnight... I'm quietly confident these boys will do well.. More concerned about the long term effect of us selling these kids after 1-2 good seasons., but won't know if this year is a one off or not until that time comes..[/p][/quote]And Gaston, obviouslyBracknellSaint

Absolutely. And with Isgrove,Reed, Gallagher, Stephens,Kelvin, Turbull,McQueen, Rowe, Mayuka ...even Sharpe to fill the bench, it could be worse... And we'll surely bring in a minimum of 3 players in the next fortnight... I'm quietly confident these boys will do well.. More concerned about the long term effect of us selling these kids after 1-2 good seasons., but won't know if this year is a one off or not until that time comes..

And Gaston, obviously

Score: 0

jls217
2:53pm Tue 29 Jul 14

Ozmosis wrote…

jls217 wrote…

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks

I used Google Translate - it's not brilliant but you get the jist. Wht your post is downvoted is quite beyond me!

Thanks.

[quote][p][bold]Ozmosis[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]jls217[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Ozmosis[/bold] wrote:
You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:
http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/
As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.[/p][/quote]I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks[/p][/quote]I used Google Translate - it's not brilliant but you get the jist. Wht your post is downvoted is quite beyond me![/p][/quote]Thanks.jls217

Ozmosis wrote…

jls217 wrote…

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks

I used Google Translate - it's not brilliant but you get the jist. Wht your post is downvoted is quite beyond me!

Thanks.

Score: 1

lambo83
8:48am Tue 29 Jul 14

Seedhouse the Unrepentant wrote…

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?

The negativity on this page is unbelievable, STOP BEING SO NEGATIVE.

We're not selling today, les and Ralph are busy running the led floodlights into the scrappy.

[quote][p][bold]Seedhouse the Unrepentant[/bold] wrote:
Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?[/p][/quote]The negativity on this page is unbelievable, STOP BEING SO NEGATIVE.
We're not selling today, les and Ralph are busy running the led floodlights into the scrappy.lambo83

Seedhouse the Unrepentant wrote…

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?

The negativity on this page is unbelievable, STOP BEING SO NEGATIVE.

We're not selling today, les and Ralph are busy running the led floodlights into the scrappy.

Score: 21

saint61
8:19am Tue 29 Jul 14

Les Reed you were crap when at Charlton an you're even worse here. PLEASE GET OFF OUR BUS !!!

Les Reed you were crap when at Charlton an you're even worse here. PLEASE GET OFF OUR BUS !!!saint61

Les Reed you were crap when at Charlton an you're even worse here. PLEASE GET OFF OUR BUS !!!

Score: 7

Ozmosis
8:04am Tue 29 Jul 14

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:
http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/
As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.Ozmosis

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

Score: -27

up saints
10:54am Tue 29 Jul 14

fist or all this is a saints site not a english lesson site so i don't give a monkeys about my spelling or grammar.once lambert llalana and shaw left we still had hope as koeman brought in decent replacements in tadic and pelle.now chambers and lovern have left and j rod and spider going by the end of the week we are up the creek without a paddle.next week i think fonte jwp clyne and maybe taggart and borch will also leave.before the season kicks off i think koeman will walk out joined by tadic and pelle.the board has openly said any player is for sale at the right price so on that basic who would want to come here.the only hope i see is the club is put up for sale asap but i think it's too late the damage has been done.the next world cup 2018 could of been over half southampton players that is sadly only a dream now shattered in only a few long weeks in southampton history

fist or all this is a saints site not a english lesson site so i don't give a monkeys about my spelling or grammar.once lambert llalana and shaw left we still had hope as koeman brought in decent replacements in tadic and pelle.now chambers and lovern have left and j rod and spider going by the end of the week we are up the creek without a paddle.next week i think fonte jwp clyne and maybe taggart and borch will also leave.before the season kicks off i think koeman will walk out joined by tadic and pelle.the board has openly said any player is for sale at the right price so on that basic who would want to come here.the only hope i see is the club is put up for sale asap but i think it's too late the damage has been done.the next world cup 2018 could of been over half southampton players that is sadly only a dream now shattered in only a few long weeks in southampton historyup saints

fist or all this is a saints site not a english lesson site so i don't give a monkeys about my spelling or grammar.once lambert llalana and shaw left we still had hope as koeman brought in decent replacements in tadic and pelle.now chambers and lovern have left and j rod and spider going by the end of the week we are up the creek without a paddle.next week i think fonte jwp clyne and maybe taggart and borch will also leave.before the season kicks off i think koeman will walk out joined by tadic and pelle.the board has openly said any player is for sale at the right price so on that basic who would want to come here.the only hope i see is the club is put up for sale asap but i think it's too late the damage has been done.the next world cup 2018 could of been over half southampton players that is sadly only a dream now shattered in only a few long weeks in southampton history

Score: -8

OSPREYSAINT
1:23pm Tue 29 Jul 14

Invidia wrote…

So where is your considered opinion on the state of affairs to date. Or will it be Well slappa my thigh stuff again.

P.S it would appear that you do not read posts correctly I actually wrote I am beginning to believe that an Osprey is another name for a Shitehawk.

OK I get the message I will go elsewhere until the mess is sorted. Shitehawk over and out.

[quote][p][bold]Invidia[/bold] wrote:
So where is your considered opinion on the state of affairs to date. Or will it be Well slappa my thigh stuff again.
P.S it would appear that you do not read posts correctly I actually wrote I am beginning to believe that an Osprey is another name for a Shitehawk.[/p][/quote]OK I get the message I will go elsewhere until the mess is sorted. Shitehawk over and out.OSPREYSAINT

Invidia wrote…

So where is your considered opinion on the state of affairs to date. Or will it be Well slappa my thigh stuff again.

P.S it would appear that you do not read posts correctly I actually wrote I am beginning to believe that an Osprey is another name for a Shitehawk.

OK I get the message I will go elsewhere until the mess is sorted. Shitehawk over and out.

Score: 1

mark.wareham
3:31pm Tue 29 Jul 14

News Fanatic wrote…

I hear that Liverpool are going to make a takeover bid for Saints. The club will be renamed Liverpool South or Liverhampton.

I heard it's now going to be renamed 'Scousehampton'.

[quote][p][bold]News Fanatic[/bold] wrote:
I hear that Liverpool are going to make a takeover bid for Saints. The club will be renamed Liverpool South or Liverhampton.[/p][/quote]I heard it's now going to be renamed 'Scousehampton'.mark.wareham

News Fanatic wrote…

I hear that Liverpool are going to make a takeover bid for Saints. The club will be renamed Liverpool South or Liverhampton.

I heard it's now going to be renamed 'Scousehampton'.

Score: 0

milton road
9:47am Tue 29 Jul 14

Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,
000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.

Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,
000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.milton road

Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,
000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.

Times are stating Clyne, Fonte and Cork want out now too. I'm being suicidal

Hope you aren't at the end of a tunnel too.

[quote][p][bold]TGodSFC[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]GX Saint[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
Boruc. Clyne , Yoshida, Fonte, Targett, Wanyama, Cork, JWP, Davis, Tadic, Pelle. isn't a bad starting XI if they all turned up and played 100%.[/p][/quote]So who else has to leave before Gaston gets to start? I think the situation is ready made for him.[/p][/quote]Good point, Gallagher, Rambo, The Wotsit, Isgrove, Mayuka impact subs as required.[/p][/quote]Times are stating Clyne, Fonte and Cork want out now too. I'm being suicidal[/p][/quote]Hope you aren't at the end of a tunnel too.OSPREYSAINT

Times are stating Clyne, Fonte and Cork want out now too. I'm being suicidal

Hope you aren't at the end of a tunnel too.

Score: 0

AaronLeeSaint
9:15am Tue 29 Jul 14

Alicesdad wrote…

Apologies for early morning pessimism.

So what would I look for to raise my spirits ?

- A press conference with the whole board, including Krueger, Reed and the other bloke who nobody ever remembers. They should deliver a clear statement of intent put the rumours into perspective.
- A statement from Ron stating that he has confidence that all is under control and he will build a strong team this season.
- A clear message, delivered personally, from the owner, that the commitment to maintaining and raising our status in the EPL is still in place and that the club is not for sale.

I also want to win the lottery, visit the Moon, cure cancer and one day see the discovery of intelligent extra terrestrial life.

I don't understand why someone cannot just come out and reassure us -
I feel for the people getting printed names on the back of their £50 shirts! How can you be sure they will still be here? I'm even afraid to get my own name on it, I don't want to end up in Liverpool!

[quote][p][bold]Alicesdad[/bold] wrote:
Apologies for early morning pessimism.
So what would I look for to raise my spirits ?
- A press conference with the whole board, including Krueger, Reed and the other bloke who nobody ever remembers. They should deliver a clear statement of intent put the rumours into perspective.
- A statement from Ron stating that he has confidence that all is under control and he will build a strong team this season.
- A clear message, delivered personally, from the owner, that the commitment to maintaining and raising our status in the EPL is still in place and that the club is not for sale.
I also want to win the lottery, visit the Moon, cure cancer and one day see the discovery of intelligent extra terrestrial life.[/p][/quote]I don't understand why someone cannot just come out and reassure us -
I feel for the people getting printed names on the back of their £50 shirts! How can you be sure they will still be here? I'm even afraid to get my own name on it, I don't want to end up in Liverpool!AaronLeeSaint

Alicesdad wrote…

Apologies for early morning pessimism.

So what would I look for to raise my spirits ?

- A press conference with the whole board, including Krueger, Reed and the other bloke who nobody ever remembers. They should deliver a clear statement of intent put the rumours into perspective.
- A statement from Ron stating that he has confidence that all is under control and he will build a strong team this season.
- A clear message, delivered personally, from the owner, that the commitment to maintaining and raising our status in the EPL is still in place and that the club is not for sale.

I also want to win the lottery, visit the Moon, cure cancer and one day see the discovery of intelligent extra terrestrial life.

I don't understand why someone cannot just come out and reassure us -
I feel for the people getting printed names on the back of their £50 shirts! How can you be sure they will still be here? I'm even afraid to get my own name on it, I don't want to end up in Liverpool!

Score: 19

OSPREYSAINT
9:44am Tue 29 Jul 14

Barney123 wrote…

Matthew 7:26

Rings so true Saints fans!

I could never understand that plank in your eye stuff, what is that all about?

[quote][p][bold]Barney123[/bold] wrote:
Matthew 7:26
Rings so true Saints fans![/p][/quote]I could never understand that plank in your eye stuff, what is that all about?OSPREYSAINT

Barney123 wrote…

Matthew 7:26

Rings so true Saints fans!

I could never understand that plank in your eye stuff, what is that all about?

Score: -2

Terry_Nutkins
8:39am Tue 29 Jul 14

Sad times at St Mary's. Krueger seems to have been brought in to find a new buyer while asset stripping the club. Meanwhile, Les Reed keeps spouting utter tripe that insults the intelligence of all fans. No chance of any sincerity coming from Southampton FC. I understand why the players now want to leave. If you can't speak the truth Les, just shut up, have some self respect & don't make yourself look an utter clown. What bothers me most is how businesses either say nothing to their customer base, or outright lie and expect us to keep swallowing this insulting disrespect.

Cortese's project was based on a business plan with targeted investment with the aims of improving the football club and by doing so increasing the value of the club and playing assets by a greater sum to which the club invested. Cortese seems to have executed this strategy extremely well and well ahead of schedule at which point, I believe, Katharina decided to cash in on her assets, subject to advice no doubt. Krueger masquerading as a managing Chairman to the fans but, allegedly, acting as an instigator in finding a new investor to take the club’s ownership from Kat Liebherr.

Cortese felt he could complete his plans and that ambition had more fruits to bear (which it likely did until this transfer window) this year, possibly finding new investment himself and taking ownership from Katharina. To do so he needed funds to continue executing this master plan. Financially, upon Markus’ will being finally executed, Katharina - as the main beneficiary (inheriting the club) - was now in sole control of the club and subsequent funds. She saw this further financial outlay as a gamble with her inheritance which was not guaranteed.

Cortese is rumoured to have offered to buy the club with investment promised by others but Katharina may have thought his offer did not fully value the club and her advisors may have influenced against this sale. The players and the manager had their doubts about her and her advisors regarding their strategy, ambitions and commitment for the club. Hence the manager and players exodus and the unsavoury position we are in today.

RIP Southampton FC. Years of great work, coaching, scouting & otherwise, eradicated in a single transfer window. Money really has ruined the game I used to love.

Sad times at St Mary's. Krueger seems to have been brought in to find a new buyer while asset stripping the club. Meanwhile, Les Reed keeps spouting utter tripe that insults the intelligence of all fans. No chance of any sincerity coming from Southampton FC. I understand why the players now want to leave. If you can't speak the truth Les, just shut up, have some self respect & don't make yourself look an utter clown. What bothers me most is how businesses either say nothing to their customer base, or outright lie and expect us to keep swallowing this insulting disrespect.
Cortese's project was based on a business plan with targeted investment with the aims of improving the football club and by doing so increasing the value of the club and playing assets by a greater sum to which the club invested. Cortese seems to have executed this strategy extremely well and well ahead of schedule at which point, I believe, Katharina decided to cash in on her assets, subject to advice no doubt. Krueger masquerading as a managing Chairman to the fans but, allegedly, acting as an instigator in finding a new investor to take the club’s ownership from Kat Liebherr.
Cortese felt he could complete his plans and that ambition had more fruits to bear (which it likely did until this transfer window) this year, possibly finding new investment himself and taking ownership from Katharina. To do so he needed funds to continue executing this master plan. Financially, upon Markus’ will being finally executed, Katharina - as the main beneficiary (inheriting the club) - was now in sole control of the club and subsequent funds. She saw this further financial outlay as a gamble with her inheritance which was not guaranteed.
Cortese is rumoured to have offered to buy the club with investment promised by others but Katharina may have thought his offer did not fully value the club and her advisors may have influenced against this sale. The players and the manager had their doubts about her and her advisors regarding their strategy, ambitions and commitment for the club. Hence the manager and players exodus and the unsavoury position we are in today.
RIP Southampton FC. Years of great work, coaching, scouting & otherwise, eradicated in a single transfer window. Money really has ruined the game I used to love.Terry_Nutkins

Sad times at St Mary's. Krueger seems to have been brought in to find a new buyer while asset stripping the club. Meanwhile, Les Reed keeps spouting utter tripe that insults the intelligence of all fans. No chance of any sincerity coming from Southampton FC. I understand why the players now want to leave. If you can't speak the truth Les, just shut up, have some self respect & don't make yourself look an utter clown. What bothers me most is how businesses either say nothing to their customer base, or outright lie and expect us to keep swallowing this insulting disrespect.

Cortese's project was based on a business plan with targeted investment with the aims of improving the football club and by doing so increasing the value of the club and playing assets by a greater sum to which the club invested. Cortese seems to have executed this strategy extremely well and well ahead of schedule at which point, I believe, Katharina decided to cash in on her assets, subject to advice no doubt. Krueger masquerading as a managing Chairman to the fans but, allegedly, acting as an instigator in finding a new investor to take the club’s ownership from Kat Liebherr.

Cortese felt he could complete his plans and that ambition had more fruits to bear (which it likely did until this transfer window) this year, possibly finding new investment himself and taking ownership from Katharina. To do so he needed funds to continue executing this master plan. Financially, upon Markus’ will being finally executed, Katharina - as the main beneficiary (inheriting the club) - was now in sole control of the club and subsequent funds. She saw this further financial outlay as a gamble with her inheritance which was not guaranteed.

Cortese is rumoured to have offered to buy the club with investment promised by others but Katharina may have thought his offer did not fully value the club and her advisors may have influenced against this sale. The players and the manager had their doubts about her and her advisors regarding their strategy, ambitions and commitment for the club. Hence the manager and players exodus and the unsavoury position we are in today.

RIP Southampton FC. Years of great work, coaching, scouting & otherwise, eradicated in a single transfer window. Money really has ruined the game I used to love.

Score: 47

Little Hitler
8:03am Tue 29 Jul 14

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.Little Hitler

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Score: 292

SPIKEISLANDTRADER
8:08am Tue 29 Jul 14

Everything MUST GO , sale sale sale . And the ANSWER s from the BOARD has not STOPPED the player s leaving , or even new signings arriving . Dont PANIC !!!
Revolt and disbelief , not a MUTINY . You Les , Ralph and Kat have KICKED every saints supporter fully . A great season closes and is wiped out in WEEKS , by the BAGS BEING PACKED at St Mary s , AND ITS not over yet , The vulture s are circling ready to pick up anything left . We have been RAPED . The FAITH has long since gone

Everything MUST GO , sale sale sale . And the ANSWER s from the BOARD has not STOPPED the player s leaving , or even new signings arriving . Dont PANIC !!!
Revolt and disbelief , not a MUTINY . You Les , Ralph and Kat have KICKED every saints supporter fully . A great season closes and is wiped out in WEEKS , by the BAGS BEING PACKED at St Mary s , AND ITS not over yet , The vulture s are circling ready to pick up anything left . We have been RAPED . The FAITH has long since goneSPIKEISLANDTRADER

Everything MUST GO , sale sale sale . And the ANSWER s from the BOARD has not STOPPED the player s leaving , or even new signings arriving . Dont PANIC !!!
Revolt and disbelief , not a MUTINY . You Les , Ralph and Kat have KICKED every saints supporter fully . A great season closes and is wiped out in WEEKS , by the BAGS BEING PACKED at St Mary s , AND ITS not over yet , The vulture s are circling ready to pick up anything left . We have been RAPED . The FAITH has long since gone

Score: -15

arthur boutfaith
8:08am Tue 29 Jul 14

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.

[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.arthur boutfaith

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.

Score: 89

loosehead
3:40pm Tue 29 Jul 14

Just read saints & Tottenham close to a deal on Sch,& JROD? (teletext) .
So was the team that bad last season we've sold two third of them?

Just read saints & Tottenham close to a deal on Sch,& JROD? (teletext) .
So was the team that bad last season we've sold two third of them?loosehead

Just read saints & Tottenham close to a deal on Sch,& JROD? (teletext) .
So was the team that bad last season we've sold two third of them?

Score: 0

Stroppy_gramps
8:11am Tue 29 Jul 14

I'm glad I'm a lot more positive than quite a few other people around here.

I think we're going to have an awesome season.

not only that, if you want to sell a club you do it when the club has lots of value, not piece by piece.

my bed is dry.

I'm glad I'm a lot more positive than quite a few other people around here.
I think we're going to have an awesome season.
not only that, if you want to sell a club you do it when the club has lots of value, not piece by piece.
my bed is dry.Stroppy_gramps

I'm glad I'm a lot more positive than quite a few other people around here.

I think we're going to have an awesome season.

not only that, if you want to sell a club you do it when the club has lots of value, not piece by piece.

my bed is dry.

Score: 42

BarnetSaint
8:12am Tue 29 Jul 14

In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.

In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.BarnetSaint

In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.

Score: -43

Alicesdad
9:06am Tue 29 Jul 14

Apologies for early morning pessimism.

So what would I look for to raise my spirits ?

- A press conference with the whole board, including Krueger, Reed and the other bloke who nobody ever remembers. They should deliver a clear statement of intent put the rumours into perspective.
- A statement from Ron stating that he has confidence that all is under control and he will build a strong team this season.
- A clear message, delivered personally, from the owner, that the commitment to maintaining and raising our status in the EPL is still in place and that the club is not for sale.

I also want to win the lottery, visit the Moon, cure cancer and one day see the discovery of intelligent extra terrestrial life.

Apologies for early morning pessimism.
So what would I look for to raise my spirits ?
- A press conference with the whole board, including Krueger, Reed and the other bloke who nobody ever remembers. They should deliver a clear statement of intent put the rumours into perspective.
- A statement from Ron stating that he has confidence that all is under control and he will build a strong team this season.
- A clear message, delivered personally, from the owner, that the commitment to maintaining and raising our status in the EPL is still in place and that the club is not for sale.
I also want to win the lottery, visit the Moon, cure cancer and one day see the discovery of intelligent extra terrestrial life.Alicesdad

Apologies for early morning pessimism.

So what would I look for to raise my spirits ?

- A press conference with the whole board, including Krueger, Reed and the other bloke who nobody ever remembers. They should deliver a clear statement of intent put the rumours into perspective.
- A statement from Ron stating that he has confidence that all is under control and he will build a strong team this season.
- A clear message, delivered personally, from the owner, that the commitment to maintaining and raising our status in the EPL is still in place and that the club is not for sale.

I also want to win the lottery, visit the Moon, cure cancer and one day see the discovery of intelligent extra terrestrial life.

Score: 26

Jimmy Squall
8:29am Tue 29 Jul 14

.and it's all shop window. All shop window FC. Cos we're by far the greatest shop window the world has ever seen

.and it's all shop window. All shop window FC. Cos we're by far the greatest shop window the world has ever seenJimmy Squall

.and it's all shop window. All shop window FC. Cos we're by far the greatest shop window the world has ever seen

Score: 19

mrtein
11:02am Tue 29 Jul 14

What Cortese achieved was brought about by borrowing money and creating debt. ( Think Man UT post Glazers). Basically, we were spending more than we earned and paying bills by borrowing money. Now whether that money was borrowed from The owner or offshore banks we don’t know. As a somebody involved in manufacturing industry ( successfully too) our owner will be more used to a business with cash reserves not built on debt ( think Man Utd before the Glazers.) The Cortese model works on the basis that each year your revenues grow and pay the debt and allow you to run the club at the same time. But as Leeds showed so spectacularly, if the growth doesn't come the bailiffs do. Whatever Katharina Leibher wants from this club I can bet it is not debt, not a drain on her own cash reserves and not a financial meltdown.

Painful as it is we have to give the blub time and our support. But the club have to help us deal with our anger and pain. Currently they are failing to do this.

What Cortese achieved was brought about by borrowing money and creating debt. ( Think Man UT post Glazers). Basically, we were spending more than we earned and paying bills by borrowing money. Now whether that money was borrowed from The owner or offshore banks we don’t know. As a somebody involved in manufacturing industry ( successfully too) our owner will be more used to a business with cash reserves not built on debt ( think Man Utd before the Glazers.) The Cortese model works on the basis that each year your revenues grow and pay the debt and allow you to run the club at the same time. But as Leeds showed so spectacularly, if the growth doesn't come the bailiffs do. Whatever Katharina Leibher wants from this club I can bet it is not debt, not a drain on her own cash reserves and not a financial meltdown.
Painful as it is we have to give the blub time and our support. But the club have to help us deal with our anger and pain. Currently they are failing to do this.mrtein

What Cortese achieved was brought about by borrowing money and creating debt. ( Think Man UT post Glazers). Basically, we were spending more than we earned and paying bills by borrowing money. Now whether that money was borrowed from The owner or offshore banks we don’t know. As a somebody involved in manufacturing industry ( successfully too) our owner will be more used to a business with cash reserves not built on debt ( think Man Utd before the Glazers.) The Cortese model works on the basis that each year your revenues grow and pay the debt and allow you to run the club at the same time. But as Leeds showed so spectacularly, if the growth doesn't come the bailiffs do. Whatever Katharina Leibher wants from this club I can bet it is not debt, not a drain on her own cash reserves and not a financial meltdown.

Painful as it is we have to give the blub time and our support. But the club have to help us deal with our anger and pain. Currently they are failing to do this.

Score: 7

Seedhouse the Unrepentant
8:35am Tue 29 Jul 14

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?Seedhouse the Unrepentant

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?

Score: 23

SnapperSaint
8:36am Tue 29 Jul 14

Well done Echo again today for publishing an article that is reflective not sensationalist, keep it up.
However, why is it that we have to rely on the excellent postings from the people that come onto this site (well done Little Hitler) to get a calm and considered summary of what might be happening at the club, the last we heard from the club itself was Les Reed justifying yet another player sale.
If Saints were a public company the shareholders would be demanding some kind of statement from the board about what is going on, well fans are like shareholders and we demand to know what is happening!
Come on Saints give the Echo some real news to report, I think we all deserve it!

Well done Echo again today for publishing an article that is reflective not sensationalist, keep it up.
However, why is it that we have to rely on the excellent postings from the people that come onto this site (well done Little Hitler) to get a calm and considered summary of what might be happening at the club, the last we heard from the club itself was Les Reed justifying yet another player sale.
If Saints were a public company the shareholders would be demanding some kind of statement from the board about what is going on, well fans are like shareholders and we demand to know what is happening!
Come on Saints give the Echo some real news to report, I think we all deserve it!SnapperSaint

Well done Echo again today for publishing an article that is reflective not sensationalist, keep it up.
However, why is it that we have to rely on the excellent postings from the people that come onto this site (well done Little Hitler) to get a calm and considered summary of what might be happening at the club, the last we heard from the club itself was Les Reed justifying yet another player sale.
If Saints were a public company the shareholders would be demanding some kind of statement from the board about what is going on, well fans are like shareholders and we demand to know what is happening!
Come on Saints give the Echo some real news to report, I think we all deserve it!

Score: 45

St.Yorkie
8:36am Tue 29 Jul 14

Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.

Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.St.Yorkie

Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.

Score: 6

Norwegian Saint
9:43am Tue 29 Jul 14

I cringe at opening the football internet pages now, just a couple of months ago I was proudly showing my work colleagues the write ups we had and a smile everytime I saw the league table but now I feel a little hollow.

OK, I didn't expect all our players to stay, I was happy for Rickie, I was understandable at Shaw, I was disappointed in Adam... but then... Ronald comes in and gives us hope, 2 good signings with only the 3 gone... I can live with that. Then Lov(himself)ren and Chambers leave within 24hrs of each other and maybe followed by my favorite player Schneiderlin and probably J-Rod.
It hurts being a Saints fan at the moment. Feeling like I've been punched in the stomach everyday with people leaving and lies.
The club seems to be in the worst position since the dark Lord days. Les is becoming a joke and is turning our club into one. These are the worst times for 5 years and us LOYAL fans deserve more answers than "be patient"... sorry Fat Les, that doesn't cut it. Look at Villa, they are in need of money but have come out fighting to keep their player (Vlaar)... where have we fought with a statement of intent? WHERE?!
Thinking forward I am optimistic that our new batch of kids will learn fast and players like Reed will flourish. This season I just want survival and build on next year, anything top half will be a miracle the after this... do we believe in miracles???

I cringe at opening the football internet pages now, just a couple of months ago I was proudly showing my work colleagues the write ups we had and a smile everytime I saw the league table but now I feel a little hollow.
OK, I didn't expect all our players to stay, I was happy for Rickie, I was understandable at Shaw, I was disappointed in Adam... but then... Ronald comes in and gives us hope, 2 good signings with only the 3 gone... I can live with that. Then Lov(himself)ren and Chambers leave within 24hrs of each other and maybe followed by my favorite player Schneiderlin and probably J-Rod.
It hurts being a Saints fan at the moment. Feeling like I've been punched in the stomach everyday with people leaving and lies.
The club seems to be in the worst position since the dark Lord days. Les is becoming a joke and is turning our club into one. These are the worst times for 5 years and us LOYAL fans deserve more answers than "be patient"... sorry Fat Les, that doesn't cut it. Look at Villa, they are in need of money but have come out fighting to keep their player (Vlaar)... where have we fought with a statement of intent? WHERE?!
Thinking forward I am optimistic that our new batch of kids will learn fast and players like Reed will flourish. This season I just want survival and build on next year, anything top half will be a miracle the after this... do we believe in miracles???Norwegian Saint

I cringe at opening the football internet pages now, just a couple of months ago I was proudly showing my work colleagues the write ups we had and a smile everytime I saw the league table but now I feel a little hollow.

OK, I didn't expect all our players to stay, I was happy for Rickie, I was understandable at Shaw, I was disappointed in Adam... but then... Ronald comes in and gives us hope, 2 good signings with only the 3 gone... I can live with that. Then Lov(himself)ren and Chambers leave within 24hrs of each other and maybe followed by my favorite player Schneiderlin and probably J-Rod.
It hurts being a Saints fan at the moment. Feeling like I've been punched in the stomach everyday with people leaving and lies.
The club seems to be in the worst position since the dark Lord days. Les is becoming a joke and is turning our club into one. These are the worst times for 5 years and us LOYAL fans deserve more answers than "be patient"... sorry Fat Les, that doesn't cut it. Look at Villa, they are in need of money but have come out fighting to keep their player (Vlaar)... where have we fought with a statement of intent? WHERE?!
Thinking forward I am optimistic that our new batch of kids will learn fast and players like Reed will flourish. This season I just want survival and build on next year, anything top half will be a miracle the after this... do we believe in miracles???

Score: 7

warrens 76
8:42am Tue 29 Jul 14

I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…

Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.

Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.

The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.

Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…

There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.

I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.

I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…
Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.
Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.
The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.
Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…
There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.
I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.warrens 76

I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…

Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.

Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.

The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.

Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…

There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.

I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.

Score: 11

de Heiligen paard 101
8:43am Tue 29 Jul 14

If ever we needed to sign a player, or two, its in the next couple of days. So come saints shows us that you can turn this around and put some people's worries to bed!
We as fans and supporters need to bet behind the players that will be puling the shirts on. snipping at them will not be good for, what must be already, rock bottom team morale. We have seen what has happened at other clubs when fans protest at games, so our players new and old need to know that we are 100% behind them!

If ever we needed to sign a player, or two, its in the next couple of days. So come saints shows us that you can turn this around and put some people's worries to bed!
We as fans and supporters need to bet behind the players that will be puling the shirts on. snipping at them will not be good for, what must be already, rock bottom team morale. We have seen what has happened at other clubs when fans protest at games, so our players new and old need to know that we are 100% behind them!de Heiligen paard 101

If ever we needed to sign a player, or two, its in the next couple of days. So come saints shows us that you can turn this around and put some people's worries to bed!
We as fans and supporters need to bet behind the players that will be puling the shirts on. snipping at them will not be good for, what must be already, rock bottom team morale. We have seen what has happened at other clubs when fans protest at games, so our players new and old need to know that we are 100% behind them!

Score: 18

warrens 76
8:48am Tue 29 Jul 14

arthur boutfaith wrote…

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.

Wishy washy, trusting this board has got us were exactly, never in the history of football has such a team been so ripped apart when not in financial difficulty. horrific..

[quote][p][bold]arthur boutfaith[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.[/p][/quote]Wishy washy, trusting this board has got us were exactly, never in the history of football has such a team been so ripped apart when not in financial difficulty. horrific..warrens 76

arthur boutfaith wrote…

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.

Wishy washy, trusting this board has got us were exactly, never in the history of football has such a team been so ripped apart when not in financial difficulty. horrific..

Score: 18

the swinging arm of channon
8:48am Tue 29 Jul 14

Does Simon Carter still feel that we are still selling our players to the top clubs and shouldnt be worried? Spurs are perennial under performers and will not qualfy for champions league, possibly not even europa league.

Does Simon Carter still feel that we are still selling our players to the top clubs and shouldnt be worried? Spurs are perennial under performers and will not qualfy for champions league, possibly not even europa league.the swinging arm of channon

Does Simon Carter still feel that we are still selling our players to the top clubs and shouldnt be worried? Spurs are perennial under performers and will not qualfy for champions league, possibly not even europa league.

Score: 15

OSPREYSAINT
8:49am Tue 29 Jul 14

Gadzooks Carruthers, it would appear that the natives are revolting.

Gadzooks Carruthers, it would appear that the natives are revolting.OSPREYSAINT

Gadzooks Carruthers, it would appear that the natives are revolting.

Score: 8

Seedhouse the Unrepentant
9:01am Tue 29 Jul 14

de Heiligen paard 101 wrote…

If ever we needed to sign a player, or two, its in the next couple of days. So come saints shows us that you can turn this around and put some people's worries to bed!
We as fans and supporters need to bet behind the players that will be puling the shirts on. snipping at them will not be good for, what must be already, rock bottom team morale. We have seen what has happened at other clubs when fans protest at games, so our players new and old need to know that we are 100% behind them!

Even you who have been defending the indefensible appear to be shifting your stance!

Jesus wasn't lying to me was he?

[quote][p][bold]de Heiligen paard 101[/bold] wrote:
If ever we needed to sign a player, or two, its in the next couple of days. So come saints shows us that you can turn this around and put some people's worries to bed!
We as fans and supporters need to bet behind the players that will be puling the shirts on. snipping at them will not be good for, what must be already, rock bottom team morale. We have seen what has happened at other clubs when fans protest at games, so our players new and old need to know that we are 100% behind them![/p][/quote]Even you who have been defending the indefensible appear to be shifting your stance!
Jesus wasn't lying to me was he?Seedhouse the Unrepentant

de Heiligen paard 101 wrote…

If ever we needed to sign a player, or two, its in the next couple of days. So come saints shows us that you can turn this around and put some people's worries to bed!
We as fans and supporters need to bet behind the players that will be puling the shirts on. snipping at them will not be good for, what must be already, rock bottom team morale. We have seen what has happened at other clubs when fans protest at games, so our players new and old need to know that we are 100% behind them!

Even you who have been defending the indefensible appear to be shifting your stance!

Jesus wasn't lying to me was he?

Score: 7

Spanish Santo
8:50am Tue 29 Jul 14

Fantastic statement by little hitler...well said. I think that you are spot on. The "fans" that are doubting the board need to realise that we are not looking for instant success and when the club was taken over it was clearly stated that we were investing in youth and facilities to become a self sufficient club that would not run into debt for a piece of silverware or champions league football. We all kbow what happens to a club if they try to punch above their weight to soon. We all need to keep the faith and see what the next five years brings...not five minutes of the first game of the season. With all the money we are recieving, I would like to see it reinvested into the stadium, facilities etc....not only overpaid mercenaries. The fact that we are producing our own kit is fantastic as it takes out the middle man and ensures that the money goes straight back to the club and not into a multinational that does not even recognise our brand. We need to stay strong as a club and keep the faith. If the board do make a statement it should be to outline our objectives for the next five years. Stay strong and COYR's

Fantastic statement by little hitler...well said. I think that you are spot on. The "fans" that are doubting the board need to realise that we are not looking for instant success and when the club was taken over it was clearly stated that we were investing in youth and facilities to become a self sufficient club that would not run into debt for a piece of silverware or champions league football. We all kbow what happens to a club if they try to punch above their weight to soon. We all need to keep the faith and see what the next five years brings...not five minutes of the first game of the season. With all the money we are recieving, I would like to see it reinvested into the stadium, facilities etc....not only overpaid mercenaries. The fact that we are producing our own kit is fantastic as it takes out the middle man and ensures that the money goes straight back to the club and not into a multinational that does not even recognise our brand. We need to stay strong as a club and keep the faith. If the board do make a statement it should be to outline our objectives for the next five years. Stay strong and COYR'sSpanish Santo

Fantastic statement by little hitler...well said. I think that you are spot on. The "fans" that are doubting the board need to realise that we are not looking for instant success and when the club was taken over it was clearly stated that we were investing in youth and facilities to become a self sufficient club that would not run into debt for a piece of silverware or champions league football. We all kbow what happens to a club if they try to punch above their weight to soon. We all need to keep the faith and see what the next five years brings...not five minutes of the first game of the season. With all the money we are recieving, I would like to see it reinvested into the stadium, facilities etc....not only overpaid mercenaries. The fact that we are producing our own kit is fantastic as it takes out the middle man and ensures that the money goes straight back to the club and not into a multinational that does not even recognise our brand. We need to stay strong as a club and keep the faith. If the board do make a statement it should be to outline our objectives for the next five years. Stay strong and COYR's

Score: 18

The Rise of The Foot Soldier.
8:50am Tue 29 Jul 14

arthur boutfaith wrote…

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.

arthur boutfaith = Osprey Saint on a different log in. COYR+WS

[quote][p][bold]arthur boutfaith[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.[/p][/quote]arthur boutfaith = Osprey Saint on a different log in. COYR+WSThe Rise of The Foot Soldier.

arthur boutfaith wrote…

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.

arthur boutfaith = Osprey Saint on a different log in. COYR+WS

Score: -9

SNUGGLES 78
8:51am Tue 29 Jul 14

Truth is the sky bubble will burst , any astute club owner will cash in before it does , all players will be sold,bank on it.

Truth is the sky bubble will burst , any astute club owner will cash in before it does , all players will be sold,bank on it.SNUGGLES 78

Truth is the sky bubble will burst , any astute club owner will cash in before it does , all players will be sold,bank on it.

Score: 7

St Forlife
8:51am Tue 29 Jul 14

warrens 76 wrote…

I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…

Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.

Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.

The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.

Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…

There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.

I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.

I agree a lot with the above - Let the top 6 self centred egotystical clubs go off an play in a super champions league.

They can play each other 4 times a year and have their fans travel 100 miles by plane for each away game. They can have some of their home games played in the States and in Asia too and the sooner this happens the better. They can operate a franchise with no relegation or promotion too.

Then we can start to get back to the real world and have a league where the rest of us start to have a football competition again

[quote][p][bold]warrens 76[/bold] wrote:
I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…
Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.
Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.
The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.
Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…
There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.
I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.[/p][/quote]I agree a lot with the above - Let the top 6 self centred egotystical clubs go off an play in a super champions league.
They can play each other 4 times a year and have their fans travel 100 miles by plane for each away game. They can have some of their home games played in the States and in Asia too and the sooner this happens the better. They can operate a franchise with no relegation or promotion too.
Then we can start to get back to the real world and have a league where the rest of us start to have a football competition againSt Forlife

warrens 76 wrote…

I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…

Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.

Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.

The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.

Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…

There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.

I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.

I agree a lot with the above - Let the top 6 self centred egotystical clubs go off an play in a super champions league.

They can play each other 4 times a year and have their fans travel 100 miles by plane for each away game. They can have some of their home games played in the States and in Asia too and the sooner this happens the better. They can operate a franchise with no relegation or promotion too.

Then we can start to get back to the real world and have a league where the rest of us start to have a football competition again

Score: 31

lambo83
8:53am Tue 29 Jul 14

Stroppy_gramps wrote…

I'm glad I'm a lot more positive than quite a few other people around here.

I think we're going to have an awesome season.

not only that, if you want to sell a club you do it when the club has lots of value, not piece by piece.

my bed is dry.

I think we've sold far too many, won't be able to attract anyone of note, have missed out on targets we should have signed, should have been more robust with our outgoing players and the clubs coming in for them, should have waited longer into the window, or at least until we had a replacement in. We've wiped out 5 years of hard work in a few months.

My bed is dry too though.

[quote][p][bold]Stroppy_gramps[/bold] wrote:
I'm glad I'm a lot more positive than quite a few other people around here.
I think we're going to have an awesome season.
not only that, if you want to sell a club you do it when the club has lots of value, not piece by piece.
my bed is dry.[/p][/quote]I think we've sold far too many, won't be able to attract anyone of note, have missed out on targets we should have signed, should have been more robust with our outgoing players and the clubs coming in for them, should have waited longer into the window, or at least until we had a replacement in. We've wiped out 5 years of hard work in a few months.
My bed is dry too though.lambo83

Stroppy_gramps wrote…

I'm glad I'm a lot more positive than quite a few other people around here.

I think we're going to have an awesome season.

not only that, if you want to sell a club you do it when the club has lots of value, not piece by piece.

my bed is dry.

I think we've sold far too many, won't be able to attract anyone of note, have missed out on targets we should have signed, should have been more robust with our outgoing players and the clubs coming in for them, should have waited longer into the window, or at least until we had a replacement in. We've wiped out 5 years of hard work in a few months.

My bed is dry too though.

Score: 18

TGodSFC
8:52am Tue 29 Jul 14

Funny how last night any negative comments towards Les Reed we met with tens of thumbs up and this morning anything said in the same light is getting thumbs down.

I’m still absolutely fuming and the icing on the cake for me is Morgan and Jay being sold, in my opinion our two best players.

I want answers; I want to know if the rumours that emerged in the French press last night (that the club was unofficially up for sale) are true.

I’m trying to reserve my judgment but our board and owner are making it very difficult.

Funny how last night any negative comments towards Les Reed we met with tens of thumbs up and this morning anything said in the same light is getting thumbs down.
I’m still absolutely fuming and the icing on the cake for me is Morgan and Jay being sold, in my opinion our two best players.
I want answers; I want to know if the rumours that emerged in the French press last night (that the club was unofficially up for sale) are true.
I’m trying to reserve my judgment but our board and owner are making it very difficult.TGodSFC

Funny how last night any negative comments towards Les Reed we met with tens of thumbs up and this morning anything said in the same light is getting thumbs down.

I’m still absolutely fuming and the icing on the cake for me is Morgan and Jay being sold, in my opinion our two best players.

I want answers; I want to know if the rumours that emerged in the French press last night (that the club was unofficially up for sale) are true.

I’m trying to reserve my judgment but our board and owner are making it very difficult.

Score: 31

Alicesdad
8:53am Tue 29 Jul 14

Saw an advert on the Tube this morning for the Imperial War Museum commemorating the centenary of WW1. Since then there's a phrase that keeps going through my mind.

It'll all be over by Christmas.

Saw an advert on the Tube this morning for the Imperial War Museum commemorating the centenary of WW1. Since then there's a phrase that keeps going through my mind.
It'll all be over by Christmas.Alicesdad

Saw an advert on the Tube this morning for the Imperial War Museum commemorating the centenary of WW1. Since then there's a phrase that keeps going through my mind.

It'll all be over by Christmas.

Score: 21

pitbull
8:54am Tue 29 Jul 14

I've been behind the board, been quite calm and understanding about the sale of our players. Each and every one of them has a logical reason for being sold.

BUT,, If Les Reed allows JRod and Morgan to Spurs I will definitely turn.
On no account should any of our players be allowed to reunite with the previous manager directly from Saints.

Morgan has said that he needs European football to cement his place in the International team. He was being kept out of that team by a player from Newcastle who have not exactly been a force in Europe, it doesn't add up.

I've not been one to demand this and that from the board but I really do think it's time some sort of statement is made as to the reasons why so many players don't want to play for Southampton.

Perhaps one of the players might spill the beans on whats going on in the club.
The Echo should have a chat with Adam Blackmore, he was close to the players.

I've been behind the board, been quite calm and understanding about the sale of our players. Each and every one of them has a logical reason for being sold.
BUT,, If Les Reed allows JRod and Morgan to Spurs I will definitely turn.
On no account should any of our players be allowed to reunite with the previous manager directly from Saints.
Morgan has said that he needs European football to cement his place in the International team. He was being kept out of that team by a player from Newcastle who have not exactly been a force in Europe, it doesn't add up.
I've not been one to demand this and that from the board but I really do think it's time some sort of statement is made as to the reasons why so many players don't want to play for Southampton.
Perhaps one of the players might spill the beans on whats going on in the club.
The Echo should have a chat with Adam Blackmore, he was close to the players.pitbull

I've been behind the board, been quite calm and understanding about the sale of our players. Each and every one of them has a logical reason for being sold.

BUT,, If Les Reed allows JRod and Morgan to Spurs I will definitely turn.
On no account should any of our players be allowed to reunite with the previous manager directly from Saints.

Morgan has said that he needs European football to cement his place in the International team. He was being kept out of that team by a player from Newcastle who have not exactly been a force in Europe, it doesn't add up.

I've not been one to demand this and that from the board but I really do think it's time some sort of statement is made as to the reasons why so many players don't want to play for Southampton.

Perhaps one of the players might spill the beans on whats going on in the club.
The Echo should have a chat with Adam Blackmore, he was close to the players.

Score: 25

Saintsayer II
8:55am Tue 29 Jul 14

Little Hitler Your post is excellently constructed and puts forward one possible scenario whilst ignoring others that are just as plausible Supposing Cortse was asked by Kat to oversee what is happening now ? Was that why he bailed out ? Perhaps he wanted to get us into the big time and then cash in because it seems transparent enough that cashing in is what Kat is doing now
Purchase price and transfers in amount to about £100m This summers transfers out could reach £150m added to the £85 from last season Then sell the club for a poultry £50 that gives a fantastic return on the
investment
Hopefully Cortese will be involved with the new owners because he did deliver on his promise. Much was made of the £30m transfer debt which was easily offset by the PL income which is guaranteed for 4 years with parachute payments
The last and scariest scenario is that Kat stays for 3 more years taking the parachute payments and allowing the club to return to L1 where it was when ML bought it

Little Hitler Your post is excellently constructed and puts forward one possible scenario whilst ignoring others that are just as plausible Supposing Cortse was asked by Kat to oversee what is happening now ? Was that why he bailed out ? Perhaps he wanted to get us into the big time and then cash in because it seems transparent enough that cashing in is what Kat is doing now
Purchase price and transfers in amount to about £100m This summers transfers out could reach £150m added to the £85 from last season Then sell the club for a poultry £50 that gives a fantastic return on the
investment
Hopefully Cortese will be involved with the new owners because he did deliver on his promise. Much was made of the £30m transfer debt which was easily offset by the PL income which is guaranteed for 4 years with parachute payments
The last and scariest scenario is that Kat stays for 3 more years taking the parachute payments and allowing the club to return to L1 where it was when ML bought itSaintsayer II

Little Hitler Your post is excellently constructed and puts forward one possible scenario whilst ignoring others that are just as plausible Supposing Cortse was asked by Kat to oversee what is happening now ? Was that why he bailed out ? Perhaps he wanted to get us into the big time and then cash in because it seems transparent enough that cashing in is what Kat is doing now
Purchase price and transfers in amount to about £100m This summers transfers out could reach £150m added to the £85 from last season Then sell the club for a poultry £50 that gives a fantastic return on the
investment
Hopefully Cortese will be involved with the new owners because he did deliver on his promise. Much was made of the £30m transfer debt which was easily offset by the PL income which is guaranteed for 4 years with parachute payments
The last and scariest scenario is that Kat stays for 3 more years taking the parachute payments and allowing the club to return to L1 where it was when ML bought it

Score: 2

jls217
9:02am Tue 29 Jul 14

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Fantastic - want the job as chairman? The para I've pasted below is the key to the future and the only thing I can think to add to this and maybe Saints are missing a trick here is. A. Other sport related activities for brand awareness and revenue B. Non sport related activities for the same reason. Thanks again for a calm, well presented and conscise post.

"The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]Fantastic - want the job as chairman? The para I've pasted below is the key to the future and the only thing I can think to add to this and maybe Saints are missing a trick here is. A. Other sport related activities for brand awareness and revenue B. Non sport related activities for the same reason. Thanks again for a calm, well presented and conscise post.
"The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.jls217

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Fantastic - want the job as chairman? The para I've pasted below is the key to the future and the only thing I can think to add to this and maybe Saints are missing a trick here is. A. Other sport related activities for brand awareness and revenue B. Non sport related activities for the same reason. Thanks again for a calm, well presented and conscise post.

"The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Score: 2

TGodSFC
8:57am Tue 29 Jul 14

St Forlife wrote…

warrens 76 wrote…

I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…

Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.

Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.

The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.

Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…

There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.

I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.

I agree a lot with the above - Let the top 6 self centred egotystical clubs go off an play in a super champions league.

They can play each other 4 times a year and have their fans travel 100 miles by plane for each away game. They can have some of their home games played in the States and in Asia too and the sooner this happens the better. They can operate a franchise with no relegation or promotion too.

Then we can start to get back to the real world and have a league where the rest of us start to have a football competition again

This has been talked about for years, but will never happen. It does become rather a dull affair when the same teams finish in the top 4 positions year in year out. The “FIFA fair play rule” is not really fair to the smaller clubs. Keeps the rich, rich and the poor, poor. It will only get worse in time.

[quote][p][bold]St Forlife[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]warrens 76[/bold] wrote:
I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…
Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.
Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.
The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.
Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…
There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.
I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.[/p][/quote]I agree a lot with the above - Let the top 6 self centred egotystical clubs go off an play in a super champions league.
They can play each other 4 times a year and have their fans travel 100 miles by plane for each away game. They can have some of their home games played in the States and in Asia too and the sooner this happens the better. They can operate a franchise with no relegation or promotion too.
Then we can start to get back to the real world and have a league where the rest of us start to have a football competition again[/p][/quote]This has been talked about for years, but will never happen. It does become rather a dull affair when the same teams finish in the top 4 positions year in year out. The “FIFA fair play rule” is not really fair to the smaller clubs. Keeps the rich, rich and the poor, poor. It will only get worse in time.TGodSFC

St Forlife wrote…

warrens 76 wrote…

I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…

Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.

Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.

The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.

Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…

There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.

I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.

I agree a lot with the above - Let the top 6 self centred egotystical clubs go off an play in a super champions league.

They can play each other 4 times a year and have their fans travel 100 miles by plane for each away game. They can have some of their home games played in the States and in Asia too and the sooner this happens the better. They can operate a franchise with no relegation or promotion too.

Then we can start to get back to the real world and have a league where the rest of us start to have a football competition again

This has been talked about for years, but will never happen. It does become rather a dull affair when the same teams finish in the top 4 positions year in year out. The “FIFA fair play rule” is not really fair to the smaller clubs. Keeps the rich, rich and the poor, poor. It will only get worse in time.

Score: 11

AucklandSaint82
8:59am Tue 29 Jul 14

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

Great summary little hitler ! You must have a lot of time on your hands ! Every time i browse the internet another saints player is leaving ! Come on saints sign someone with premier league experience!

[quote][p][bold]Ozmosis[/bold] wrote:
You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:
http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/
As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.[/p][/quote]Great summary little hitler ! You must have a lot of time on your hands ! Every time i browse the internet another saints player is leaving ! Come on saints sign someone with premier league experience!AucklandSaint82

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

Great summary little hitler ! You must have a lot of time on your hands ! Every time i browse the internet another saints player is leaving ! Come on saints sign someone with premier league experience!

Score: 2

Sherborne Saint
9:10am Tue 29 Jul 14

St.Yorkie wrote…

Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.

I just don't understand it. My work and living location mean often this is the closest I get to physically holding the DE (even Salisbury train station no longer sell the echo). I just don't get how our city's daily paper can take such a nonsensical juxtaposition about our club and our current plight. Occasionally we have honest articulate well thought out articles then they are lifting anti Saints stories direct from the nationals and the internet and thus fanning the flames about the chaos at St Mary's. I don't want the echo to read like the 'official' Les Reed sugar coated poison pill BS. I just want the truth about what the hell is going on at our club. at the end of day Southampton Echo you are either with us or against us you can't really be both.

[quote][p][bold]St.Yorkie[/bold] wrote:
Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.[/p][/quote]I just don't understand it. My work and living location mean often this is the closest I get to physically holding the DE (even Salisbury train station no longer sell the echo). I just don't get how our city's daily paper can take such a nonsensical juxtaposition about our club and our current plight. Occasionally we have honest articulate well thought out articles then they are lifting anti Saints stories direct from the nationals and the internet and thus fanning the flames about the chaos at St Mary's. I don't want the echo to read like the 'official' Les Reed sugar coated poison pill BS. I just want the truth about what the hell is going on at our club. at the end of day Southampton Echo you are either with us or against us you can't really be both.Sherborne Saint

St.Yorkie wrote…

Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.

I just don't understand it. My work and living location mean often this is the closest I get to physically holding the DE (even Salisbury train station no longer sell the echo). I just don't get how our city's daily paper can take such a nonsensical juxtaposition about our club and our current plight. Occasionally we have honest articulate well thought out articles then they are lifting anti Saints stories direct from the nationals and the internet and thus fanning the flames about the chaos at St Mary's. I don't want the echo to read like the 'official' Les Reed sugar coated poison pill BS. I just want the truth about what the hell is going on at our club. at the end of day Southampton Echo you are either with us or against us you can't really be both.

Score: 8

Clever Dick
9:48am Tue 29 Jul 14

Saintsayer II wrote…

Little Hitler Your post is excellently constructed and puts forward one possible scenario whilst ignoring others that are just as plausible Supposing Cortse was asked by Kat to oversee what is happening now ? Was that why he bailed out ? Perhaps he wanted to get us into the big time and then cash in because it seems transparent enough that cashing in is what Kat is doing now
Purchase price and transfers in amount to about £100m This summers transfers out could reach £150m added to the £85 from last season Then sell the club for a poultry £50 that gives a fantastic return on the
investment
Hopefully Cortese will be involved with the new owners because he did deliver on his promise. Much was made of the £30m transfer debt which was easily offset by the PL income which is guaranteed for 4 years with parachute payments
The last and scariest scenario is that Kat stays for 3 more years taking the parachute payments and allowing the club to return to L1 where it was when ML bought it

Not forgetting of course that she will be losing £250 million in SKY money and subsequently smaller gate receipts.. Or to put it another way.... What a load of bo11ocks.

[quote][p][bold]Saintsayer II[/bold] wrote:
Little Hitler Your post is excellently constructed and puts forward one possible scenario whilst ignoring others that are just as plausible Supposing Cortse was asked by Kat to oversee what is happening now ? Was that why he bailed out ? Perhaps he wanted to get us into the big time and then cash in because it seems transparent enough that cashing in is what Kat is doing now
Purchase price and transfers in amount to about £100m This summers transfers out could reach £150m added to the £85 from last season Then sell the club for a poultry £50 that gives a fantastic return on the
investment
Hopefully Cortese will be involved with the new owners because he did deliver on his promise. Much was made of the £30m transfer debt which was easily offset by the PL income which is guaranteed for 4 years with parachute payments
The last and scariest scenario is that Kat stays for 3 more years taking the parachute payments and allowing the club to return to L1 where it was when ML bought it[/p][/quote]Not forgetting of course that she will be losing £250 million in SKY money and subsequently smaller gate receipts.. Or to put it another way.... What a load of bo11ocks.Clever Dick

Saintsayer II wrote…

Little Hitler Your post is excellently constructed and puts forward one possible scenario whilst ignoring others that are just as plausible Supposing Cortse was asked by Kat to oversee what is happening now ? Was that why he bailed out ? Perhaps he wanted to get us into the big time and then cash in because it seems transparent enough that cashing in is what Kat is doing now
Purchase price and transfers in amount to about £100m This summers transfers out could reach £150m added to the £85 from last season Then sell the club for a poultry £50 that gives a fantastic return on the
investment
Hopefully Cortese will be involved with the new owners because he did deliver on his promise. Much was made of the £30m transfer debt which was easily offset by the PL income which is guaranteed for 4 years with parachute payments
The last and scariest scenario is that Kat stays for 3 more years taking the parachute payments and allowing the club to return to L1 where it was when ML bought it

Not forgetting of course that she will be losing £250 million in SKY money and subsequently smaller gate receipts.. Or to put it another way.... What a load of bo11ocks.

Score: -2

u bunch of mugs
9:02am Tue 29 Jul 14

God what's happened to our fan base years ago we used to be full of passion for this great club and city now it's all what what old chap happy clap and in The board we trust ****.
When will you lot learn they don't give a **** about the club they just want the money.
This would not happen at any other club cause the fans wouldn't let it. Say what you like about the blue **** down the road but at least they have passion. Fu@k that hurt to say that

God what's happened to our fan base years ago we used to be full of passion for this great club and city now it's all what what old chap happy clap and in The board we trust ****.
When will you lot learn they don't give a **** about the club they just want the money.
This would not happen at any other club cause the fans wouldn't let it. Say what you like about the blue **** down the road but at least they have passion. Fu@k that hurt to say thatu bunch of mugs

God what's happened to our fan base years ago we used to be full of passion for this great club and city now it's all what what old chap happy clap and in The board we trust ****.
When will you lot learn they don't give a **** about the club they just want the money.
This would not happen at any other club cause the fans wouldn't let it. Say what you like about the blue **** down the road but at least they have passion. Fu@k that hurt to say that

Score: 15

sasmike
9:15am Tue 29 Jul 14

LES WEED . DO ONE & F O

LES WEED . DO ONE & F Osasmike

LES WEED . DO ONE & F O

Score: 10

steekeemcglue
9:07am Tue 29 Jul 14

A good manager will take his time and get the right players. No panic buying or chucking stupid money at average players ( Gaston, Osvaldo etc etc ). Saints will sign players but it is better to be patient than to rush into panic buying. When you look at our bench last season it was clear our squad was heavy without quality to come on and turn games.... Yes of course there was Guly and who would not want a class player like that on the bench but apart from him , we often looked options-limited. For me the player sale frenzy is happening in a small timeframe because we are willingly dancing to the other clubs (and the players) tunes because the money they are paying is frankly stupid. Thats fine. Now lets just be patient and things will unfold. Too many people are too quick to judge and guess the club strategy and yes they may well reasons for concern but the full picture has not yet emerged.

A good manager will take his time and get the right players. No panic buying or chucking stupid money at average players ( Gaston, Osvaldo etc etc ). Saints will sign players but it is better to be patient than to rush into panic buying. When you look at our bench last season it was clear our squad was heavy without quality to come on and turn games.... Yes of course there was Guly and who would not want a class player like that on the bench but apart from him , we often looked options-limited. For me the player sale frenzy is happening in a small timeframe because we are willingly dancing to the other clubs (and the players) tunes because the money they are paying is frankly stupid. Thats fine. Now lets just be patient and things will unfold. Too many people are too quick to judge and guess the club strategy and yes they may well reasons for concern but the full picture has not yet emerged.steekeemcglue

A good manager will take his time and get the right players. No panic buying or chucking stupid money at average players ( Gaston, Osvaldo etc etc ). Saints will sign players but it is better to be patient than to rush into panic buying. When you look at our bench last season it was clear our squad was heavy without quality to come on and turn games.... Yes of course there was Guly and who would not want a class player like that on the bench but apart from him , we often looked options-limited. For me the player sale frenzy is happening in a small timeframe because we are willingly dancing to the other clubs (and the players) tunes because the money they are paying is frankly stupid. Thats fine. Now lets just be patient and things will unfold. Too many people are too quick to judge and guess the club strategy and yes they may well reasons for concern but the full picture has not yet emerged.

Score: 5

jls217
9:07am Tue 29 Jul 14

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks

[quote][p][bold]Ozmosis[/bold] wrote:
You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:
http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/
As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.[/p][/quote]I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanksjls217

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks

Score: 2

This is Southampton and we are the Saints
3:32pm Tue 29 Jul 14

One this is for sure this was a betters club when Cortese was in charge!
Fact! He had the players working for team not themselves! This would never had happened under his watch!

One this is for sure this was a betters club when Cortese was in charge!
Fact! He had the players working for team not themselves! This would never had happened under his watch!This is Southampton and we are the Saints

One this is for sure this was a betters club when Cortese was in charge!
Fact! He had the players working for team not themselves! This would never had happened under his watch!

Score: 0

de Heiligen paard 101
9:13am Tue 29 Jul 14

Seedhouse the Unrepentant wrote…

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?

seed, didn't you keep on complaining that we `couldn't sell players` a while back? `why cant we sell any of the players` you used to say, well look where that's got us now! I blame you for all these players being sold. les reed must have been reading your posts and thought to himself `well the fans want players to be sold, I will see what I can do`, seed can you start complaining that we aren't signing any £25mill+ players, we need them soon!

;0) ;0) ;0) ;0) ;0) ;0)

[quote][p][bold]Seedhouse the Unrepentant[/bold] wrote:
Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?[/p][/quote]seed, didn't you keep on complaining that we `couldn't sell players` a while back? `why cant we sell any of the players` you used to say, well look where that's got us now! I blame you for all these players being sold. les reed must have been reading your posts and thought to himself `well the fans want players to be sold, I will see what I can do`, seed can you start complaining that we aren't signing any £25mill+ players, we need them soon!
;0) ;0) ;0) ;0) ;0) ;0)de Heiligen paard 101

Seedhouse the Unrepentant wrote…

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?

seed, didn't you keep on complaining that we `couldn't sell players` a while back? `why cant we sell any of the players` you used to say, well look where that's got us now! I blame you for all these players being sold. les reed must have been reading your posts and thought to himself `well the fans want players to be sold, I will see what I can do`, seed can you start complaining that we aren't signing any £25mill+ players, we need them soon!

;0) ;0) ;0) ;0) ;0) ;0)

Score: 3

Sherborne Saint
9:14am Tue 29 Jul 14

Sherborne Saint wrote…

St.Yorkie wrote…

Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.

I just don't understand it. My work and living location mean often this is the closest I get to physically holding the DE (even Salisbury train station no longer sell the echo). I just don't get how our city's daily paper can take such a nonsensical juxtaposition about our club and our current plight. Occasionally we have honest articulate well thought out articles then they are lifting anti Saints stories direct from the nationals and the internet and thus fanning the flames about the chaos at St Mary's. I don't want the echo to read like the 'official' Les Reed sugar coated poison pill BS. I just want the truth about what the hell is going on at our club. at the end of day Southampton Echo you are either with us or against us you can't really be both.

Sorry St Yorkie don't know what happened there I was meant to post an independent general comment and not necessarily a reply to yours.

[quote][p][bold]Sherborne Saint[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]St.Yorkie[/bold] wrote:
Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.[/p][/quote]I just don't understand it. My work and living location mean often this is the closest I get to physically holding the DE (even Salisbury train station no longer sell the echo). I just don't get how our city's daily paper can take such a nonsensical juxtaposition about our club and our current plight. Occasionally we have honest articulate well thought out articles then they are lifting anti Saints stories direct from the nationals and the internet and thus fanning the flames about the chaos at St Mary's. I don't want the echo to read like the 'official' Les Reed sugar coated poison pill BS. I just want the truth about what the hell is going on at our club. at the end of day Southampton Echo you are either with us or against us you can't really be both.[/p][/quote]Sorry St Yorkie don't know what happened there I was meant to post an independent general comment and not necessarily a reply to yours.Sherborne Saint

Sherborne Saint wrote…

St.Yorkie wrote…

Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.

I just don't understand it. My work and living location mean often this is the closest I get to physically holding the DE (even Salisbury train station no longer sell the echo). I just don't get how our city's daily paper can take such a nonsensical juxtaposition about our club and our current plight. Occasionally we have honest articulate well thought out articles then they are lifting anti Saints stories direct from the nationals and the internet and thus fanning the flames about the chaos at St Mary's. I don't want the echo to read like the 'official' Les Reed sugar coated poison pill BS. I just want the truth about what the hell is going on at our club. at the end of day Southampton Echo you are either with us or against us you can't really be both.

Sorry St Yorkie don't know what happened there I was meant to post an independent general comment and not necessarily a reply to yours.

Score: 0

Confucious
9:33am Tue 29 Jul 14

The happy clappers on here won't like me reminding them, but over four years ago I posted this:

"Plenty of euphoria on here today, but mark my words, the appointment of Pardew is very bad news. Ok he may win the JPT or something, but then he'll be fired - leading to the appointment of a little known lower Div manager - eg Adkins at Scunny. You will all cheer when Adkins wins two successive promotions, but he'll hit the dust a few months later as Nicola brings in a suspect foreigner of the likes of Pochettinho at Espanyol. More cheering as he will keep us up and then get an eighth or better position.

"But ask yourselves...will Nichola last?....will Pochettinho stay?...and if not will there be a complete debacle and nightmare player exodus? 'No, No, No' I heard you say (especially Seed who was ecstatic and building a metaphorical flat up Nicola's @rse at the time).

"Well - come back and tell me that in July 2014." I concluded.

Some hope - you're all on my bandwagon now. We're doomed.

Of course at the time I was derided and branded a neggie for this. But where are you now?

The happy clappers on here won't like me reminding them, but over four years ago I posted this:
"Plenty of euphoria on here today, but mark my words, the appointment of Pardew is very bad news. Ok he may win the JPT or something, but then he'll be fired - leading to the appointment of a little known lower Div manager - eg Adkins at Scunny. You will all cheer when Adkins wins two successive promotions, but he'll hit the dust a few months later as Nicola brings in a suspect foreigner of the likes of Pochettinho at Espanyol. More cheering as he will keep us up and then get an eighth or better position.
"But ask yourselves...will Nichola last?....will Pochettinho stay?...and if not will there be a complete debacle and nightmare player exodus? 'No, No, No' I heard you say (especially Seed who was ecstatic and building a metaphorical flat up Nicola's @rse at the time).
"Well - come back and tell me that in July 2014." I concluded.
Some hope - you're all on my bandwagon now. We're doomed.
Of course at the time I was derided and branded a neggie for this. But where are you now?Confucious

The happy clappers on here won't like me reminding them, but over four years ago I posted this:

"Plenty of euphoria on here today, but mark my words, the appointment of Pardew is very bad news. Ok he may win the JPT or something, but then he'll be fired - leading to the appointment of a little known lower Div manager - eg Adkins at Scunny. You will all cheer when Adkins wins two successive promotions, but he'll hit the dust a few months later as Nicola brings in a suspect foreigner of the likes of Pochettinho at Espanyol. More cheering as he will keep us up and then get an eighth or better position.

"But ask yourselves...will Nichola last?....will Pochettinho stay?...and if not will there be a complete debacle and nightmare player exodus? 'No, No, No' I heard you say (especially Seed who was ecstatic and building a metaphorical flat up Nicola's @rse at the time).

"Well - come back and tell me that in July 2014." I concluded.

Some hope - you're all on my bandwagon now. We're doomed.

Of course at the time I was derided and branded a neggie for this. But where are you now?

Score: 16

50 Years A Supporter
9:16am Tue 29 Jul 14

I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it!

I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it!50 Years A Supporter

I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it!

Score: 4

InsideOutCat
9:16am Tue 29 Jul 14

A thread starting with one of the best posts I've read on here (well done Little Hitler) once again gets taken over by abusive outpourings of mindless hysteria. Can the "Sack anything that moves" faction please answer the question "And then what?". Spend all the money just because we have it? Let the fans decide what the manager can and can't do? There's a line that divides loving something and controlling it. A lot of people on here need to remember where it is.

A thread starting with one of the best posts I've read on here (well done Little Hitler) once again gets taken over by abusive outpourings of mindless hysteria. Can the "Sack anything that moves" faction please answer the question "And then what?". Spend all the money just because we have it? Let the fans decide what the manager can and can't do? There's a line that divides loving something and controlling it. A lot of people on here need to remember where it is.InsideOutCat

A thread starting with one of the best posts I've read on here (well done Little Hitler) once again gets taken over by abusive outpourings of mindless hysteria. Can the "Sack anything that moves" faction please answer the question "And then what?". Spend all the money just because we have it? Let the fans decide what the manager can and can't do? There's a line that divides loving something and controlling it. A lot of people on here need to remember where it is.

Score: 12

Strasbourg Saint
9:17am Tue 29 Jul 14

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

You could be right or wrong and so could the article (which seems to have been written as though it has some hard facts, where as most people are just guessing what exactly is going on). A different slant - 'the board are not to blame' - is provided here:
http://www.mirror.co
.uk/sport/football/n
ews/southampton-boar
d-cannot-blamed-exod
us-3926519
(thanks to whoever first shared it).

I think the Mirror article is partly right so far as it goes. What it doesn't do is question some of the decisions the board has taken which continue to baffle me (and, clearly, many others).
1. Why, in early Spring, did Ralph make that statement about the debt? (Which I've described before as being like putting a 'players for sale' sign outside SMS.)
2. Having then made it, why didn't he go on to clarify how much needed urgent action (probably under £10m) as opposed to the larger part which was being serviced through repayments over time?
3. Why, at the end of last season, didn't the board simply state that the first matter they would address was the managerial team? Once it was clear that MP was off with his chums (and I think we can all see now that he had taken that decision after NC left), surely the important thing was to bring in a new management team (and get the WC out of the way) BEFORE negotiating transfers in or out.
4. Why has communication and what I'll call 'promoting the vision' (sic) been so badly handled?

I think - INDIVIDUALLY - there's a case for each and every player sale. (Top money for the young fullbacks, Rickie to his boyhood team, others wanting bigger pay days and European football - which Saints can't offer right now - Osvaldo needing to be moved on ......) but there comes a point when selling a player now (because the individual income will never be as high again once the length of that player's contract dwindles or having left that player in the reserves to rot as a punishment ....) has too great an impact on the speculated future finances and projected progress of the Club.

We can all see that £100m in the bank would end up as confetti if the club was relegated and, even if/when that money is spent on new players, there's no guarantee that they'll blend into a team (note Spuds last season).

So, rather than spit the dummy, as others have chosen to do - and it's their right - I will wait and see (like Little Hitler above). Once the dust settles, once we know who has come in (and the task of attracting players in has been made far more difficult by all of this no matter where the blame lies) and once we have a clearer idea where Ron and his team are leading us, then I'll judge.

For now, I will continue to support my team, I will EXPECT the board and manager to deliver us out of this mess for which the blame IMO is shared between everyone involved (NC, MP, current board, players, agents, media, Premier League set up ....) and I will try to understand those fans who see things differently.

In the end, we all share a couple of things:
1. a passion for the Saints
2. a sense of anger and disbelief - probably, as with me, resulting in waking early most mornings plagued by this matter.

Chin up, folks, please let's try to put this into perspective (and I'm speaking to myself here). When you see some of the things currently unfolding across the world, our collective nightmare really isn't what Bill Shankly famously described as 'more important than life or death'.

[quote][p][bold]Ozmosis[/bold] wrote:
You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:
http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/
As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.[/p][/quote]You could be right or wrong and so could the article (which seems to have been written as though it has some hard facts, where as most people are just guessing what exactly is going on). A different slant - 'the board are not to blame' - is provided here:
http://www.mirror.co
.uk/sport/football/n
ews/southampton-boar
d-cannot-blamed-exod
us-3926519
(thanks to whoever first shared it).
I think the Mirror article is partly right so far as it goes. What it doesn't do is question some of the decisions the board has taken which continue to baffle me (and, clearly, many others).
1. Why, in early Spring, did Ralph make that statement about the debt? (Which I've described before as being like putting a 'players for sale' sign outside SMS.)
2. Having then made it, why didn't he go on to clarify how much needed urgent action (probably under £10m) as opposed to the larger part which was being serviced through repayments over time?
3. Why, at the end of last season, didn't the board simply state that the first matter they would address was the managerial team? Once it was clear that MP was off with his chums (and I think we can all see now that he had taken that decision after NC left), surely the important thing was to bring in a new management team (and get the WC out of the way) BEFORE negotiating transfers in or out.
4. Why has communication and what I'll call 'promoting the vision' (sic) been so badly handled?
I think - INDIVIDUALLY - there's a case for each and every player sale. (Top money for the young fullbacks, Rickie to his boyhood team, others wanting bigger pay days and European football - which Saints can't offer right now - Osvaldo needing to be moved on ......) but there comes a point when selling a player now (because the individual income will never be as high again once the length of that player's contract dwindles or having left that player in the reserves to rot as a punishment ....) has too great an impact on the speculated future finances and projected progress of the Club.
We can all see that £100m in the bank would end up as confetti if the club was relegated and, even if/when that money is spent on new players, there's no guarantee that they'll blend into a team (note Spuds last season).
So, rather than spit the dummy, as others have chosen to do - and it's their right - I will wait and see (like Little Hitler above). Once the dust settles, once we know who has come in (and the task of attracting players in has been made far more difficult by all of this no matter where the blame lies) and once we have a clearer idea where Ron and his team are leading us, then I'll judge.
For now, I will continue to support my team, I will EXPECT the board and manager to deliver us out of this mess for which the blame IMO is shared between everyone involved (NC, MP, current board, players, agents, media, Premier League set up ....) and I will try to understand those fans who see things differently.
In the end, we all share a couple of things:
1. a passion for the Saints
2. a sense of anger and disbelief - probably, as with me, resulting in waking early most mornings plagued by this matter.
Chin up, folks, please let's try to put this into perspective (and I'm speaking to myself here). When you see some of the things currently unfolding across the world, our collective nightmare really isn't what Bill Shankly famously described as 'more important than life or death'.Strasbourg Saint

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

You could be right or wrong and so could the article (which seems to have been written as though it has some hard facts, where as most people are just guessing what exactly is going on). A different slant - 'the board are not to blame' - is provided here:
http://www.mirror.co
.uk/sport/football/n
ews/southampton-boar
d-cannot-blamed-exod
us-3926519
(thanks to whoever first shared it).

I think the Mirror article is partly right so far as it goes. What it doesn't do is question some of the decisions the board has taken which continue to baffle me (and, clearly, many others).
1. Why, in early Spring, did Ralph make that statement about the debt? (Which I've described before as being like putting a 'players for sale' sign outside SMS.)
2. Having then made it, why didn't he go on to clarify how much needed urgent action (probably under £10m) as opposed to the larger part which was being serviced through repayments over time?
3. Why, at the end of last season, didn't the board simply state that the first matter they would address was the managerial team? Once it was clear that MP was off with his chums (and I think we can all see now that he had taken that decision after NC left), surely the important thing was to bring in a new management team (and get the WC out of the way) BEFORE negotiating transfers in or out.
4. Why has communication and what I'll call 'promoting the vision' (sic) been so badly handled?

I think - INDIVIDUALLY - there's a case for each and every player sale. (Top money for the young fullbacks, Rickie to his boyhood team, others wanting bigger pay days and European football - which Saints can't offer right now - Osvaldo needing to be moved on ......) but there comes a point when selling a player now (because the individual income will never be as high again once the length of that player's contract dwindles or having left that player in the reserves to rot as a punishment ....) has too great an impact on the speculated future finances and projected progress of the Club.

We can all see that £100m in the bank would end up as confetti if the club was relegated and, even if/when that money is spent on new players, there's no guarantee that they'll blend into a team (note Spuds last season).

So, rather than spit the dummy, as others have chosen to do - and it's their right - I will wait and see (like Little Hitler above). Once the dust settles, once we know who has come in (and the task of attracting players in has been made far more difficult by all of this no matter where the blame lies) and once we have a clearer idea where Ron and his team are leading us, then I'll judge.

For now, I will continue to support my team, I will EXPECT the board and manager to deliver us out of this mess for which the blame IMO is shared between everyone involved (NC, MP, current board, players, agents, media, Premier League set up ....) and I will try to understand those fans who see things differently.

In the end, we all share a couple of things:
1. a passion for the Saints
2. a sense of anger and disbelief - probably, as with me, resulting in waking early most mornings plagued by this matter.

Chin up, folks, please let's try to put this into perspective (and I'm speaking to myself here). When you see some of the things currently unfolding across the world, our collective nightmare really isn't what Bill Shankly famously described as 'more important than life or death'.

Score: 14

St Van Roetford
9:19am Tue 29 Jul 14

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

I'm only going to read one comment today and it's going to be this one, meaning I shall go about my 'business' filled with rosy-cheeked optimism.

Thank you, Hitler.

[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]I'm only going to read one comment today and it's going to be this one, meaning I shall go about my 'business' filled with rosy-cheeked optimism.
Thank you, Hitler.St Van Roetford

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

I'm only going to read one comment today and it's going to be this one, meaning I shall go about my 'business' filled with rosy-cheeked optimism.

Thank you, Hitler.

Score: 9

miltonarcher
9:23am Tue 29 Jul 14

A number of poster have used the phrase,"Will the last person leaving SMS please turn off the lights" Unfortunately, Les has sold off the light switches at SMS. "Obviously we didn't want to lose our switches but this was good business for the club, some of the switches have been with the club a long time and it was time to move them on". It was a gamble for the purchasers because some of the switches, those in the media centre where the club updates fans, have not been used for some time. Rumours that Ron Koeman is bringing in a batch of Dutch candles to replace the state of the art switches has not been denied. Les has asked for fans to be patient and not panic, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Albeit light provided by sub-standard foreign candles.

A number of poster have used the phrase,"Will the last person leaving SMS please turn off the lights" Unfortunately, Les has sold off the light switches at SMS. "Obviously we didn't want to lose our switches but this was good business for the club, some of the switches have been with the club a long time and it was time to move them on". It was a gamble for the purchasers because some of the switches, those in the media centre where the club updates fans, have not been used for some time. Rumours that Ron Koeman is bringing in a batch of Dutch candles to replace the state of the art switches has not been denied. Les has asked for fans to be patient and not panic, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Albeit light provided by sub-standard foreign candles.miltonarcher

A number of poster have used the phrase,"Will the last person leaving SMS please turn off the lights" Unfortunately, Les has sold off the light switches at SMS. "Obviously we didn't want to lose our switches but this was good business for the club, some of the switches have been with the club a long time and it was time to move them on". It was a gamble for the purchasers because some of the switches, those in the media centre where the club updates fans, have not been used for some time. Rumours that Ron Koeman is bringing in a batch of Dutch candles to replace the state of the art switches has not been denied. Les has asked for fans to be patient and not panic, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Albeit light provided by sub-standard foreign candles.

Score: 5

OSPREYSAINT
9:23am Tue 29 Jul 14

The Rise of The Foot Soldier. wrote…

arthur boutfaith wrote…

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.

arthur boutfaith = Osprey Saint on a different log in. COYR+WS

Don't you start with multiple log on paranoia, I have one sign-on name on this site, one sheet is enough.

[quote][p][bold]The Rise of The Foot Soldier.[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]arthur boutfaith[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.[/p][/quote]arthur boutfaith = Osprey Saint on a different log in. COYR+WS[/p][/quote]Don't you start with multiple log on paranoia, I have one sign-on name on this site, one sheet is enough.OSPREYSAINT

The Rise of The Foot Soldier. wrote…

arthur boutfaith wrote…

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.

arthur boutfaith = Osprey Saint on a different log in. COYR+WS

Don't you start with multiple log on paranoia, I have one sign-on name on this site, one sheet is enough.

Score: 2

jls217
9:24am Tue 29 Jul 14

St Forlife wrote…

warrens 76 wrote…

I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…

Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.

Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.

The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.

Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…

There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.

I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.

I agree a lot with the above - Let the top 6 self centred egotystical clubs go off an play in a super champions league.

They can play each other 4 times a year and have their fans travel 100 miles by plane for each away game. They can have some of their home games played in the States and in Asia too and the sooner this happens the better. They can operate a franchise with no relegation or promotion too.

Then we can start to get back to the real world and have a league where the rest of us start to have a football competition again

There is a huge risk attached to that. Unless there is a rule within the framework of the "Underlings" league. The top half dozen or even teams from the top flight elsewhere in Europe (the world even) will purchase interests in the Underlings league teams and they would just become feeder clubs for the Super world league - we end up in the same mire but on a bigger scale.
Something clearly needs to be done for the protection of the game, unfortunatelly those in the decision making process for FA, EUFA and Fifa are in a cosy little fraternity which is raking in billions and do not want the status quo interfered with. There are those who might say there is rampant corruption afoot - I have no evidence to suggest this so couldn't possibly comment.

[quote][p][bold]St Forlife[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]warrens 76[/bold] wrote:
I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…
Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.
Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.
The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.
Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…
There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.
I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.[/p][/quote]I agree a lot with the above - Let the top 6 self centred egotystical clubs go off an play in a super champions league.
They can play each other 4 times a year and have their fans travel 100 miles by plane for each away game. They can have some of their home games played in the States and in Asia too and the sooner this happens the better. They can operate a franchise with no relegation or promotion too.
Then we can start to get back to the real world and have a league where the rest of us start to have a football competition again[/p][/quote]There is a huge risk attached to that. Unless there is a rule within the framework of the "Underlings" league. The top half dozen or even teams from the top flight elsewhere in Europe (the world even) will purchase interests in the Underlings league teams and they would just become feeder clubs for the Super world league - we end up in the same mire but on a bigger scale.
Something clearly needs to be done for the protection of the game, unfortunatelly those in the decision making process for FA, EUFA and Fifa are in a cosy little fraternity which is raking in billions and do not want the status quo interfered with. There are those who might say there is rampant corruption afoot - I have no evidence to suggest this so couldn't possibly comment.jls217

St Forlife wrote…

warrens 76 wrote…

I posted back when NC went that an almighty row had been brewing between him and her over some 18 months…

Marcus a German industrialist self made billionaire entrusted NC with the club, he succeeded beyond anyones wildest dreams and as for return on investment, well, it is plain to see.

Katerina has no such passion or flair, she has never earned a penny in her life and has the dead hand of Swiss meanness through her bones, something I said at the time.

The media and our own small thinking fans believe it was all a ridiculuous dream and we could never aspire to break into the top 4, firstly Porto, Atletico Madrid, Bilbao have all supped at the top table, it is do able, moreover what are dreams for, if we and say 88 other clubs are to accept
we can never join them then we should all throw the towel in now.

Putting greed of our own people to one side the FA need to make football a sport again, fat chance in their own way they are just as corrupt as FIFA just not as obvious, in thrall to the Prem, Sky and global revenues…

There have been player strikes before but I think all clubs outside of the top 6 should boycott the current set up, if the top 6 only play each other every week it will become pretty boring and as few can travel around Europe a permanent super league would not have the atmosphere either.

I am accepting that we are going back to league 1, I am also accepting that the one and only chance to be a bigger club has gone….if I met this board I would rip them a new one..Lowe was low but he did not have the luxury of a 200+ million asset to play with, for this board there is no excuse.

I agree a lot with the above - Let the top 6 self centred egotystical clubs go off an play in a super champions league.

They can play each other 4 times a year and have their fans travel 100 miles by plane for each away game. They can have some of their home games played in the States and in Asia too and the sooner this happens the better. They can operate a franchise with no relegation or promotion too.

Then we can start to get back to the real world and have a league where the rest of us start to have a football competition again

There is a huge risk attached to that. Unless there is a rule within the framework of the "Underlings" league. The top half dozen or even teams from the top flight elsewhere in Europe (the world even) will purchase interests in the Underlings league teams and they would just become feeder clubs for the Super world league - we end up in the same mire but on a bigger scale.
Something clearly needs to be done for the protection of the game, unfortunatelly those in the decision making process for FA, EUFA and Fifa are in a cosy little fraternity which is raking in billions and do not want the status quo interfered with. There are those who might say there is rampant corruption afoot - I have no evidence to suggest this so couldn't possibly comment.

Score: 6

de Heiligen paard 101
9:25am Tue 29 Jul 14

Alicesdad wrote…

Apologies for early morning pessimism.

So what would I look for to raise my spirits ?

- A press conference with the whole board, including Krueger, Reed and the other bloke who nobody ever remembers. They should deliver a clear statement of intent put the rumours into perspective.
- A statement from Ron stating that he has confidence that all is under control and he will build a strong team this season.
- A clear message, delivered personally, from the owner, that the commitment to maintaining and raising our status in the EPL is still in place and that the club is not for sale.

I also want to win the lottery, visit the Moon, cure cancer and one day see the discovery of intelligent extra terrestrial life.

extra terrestrial life? well that's already been sorted for you, do you not remember sammy2sheds? think about that name for a min. its not 2sheds its 2`s heads! hes not been banned just taken back to the mother ship!

talk to beardy branson about the moon, hes got to space so its got to be the next step!

there are so many people on here who can se the future so well its obvious they have time machines, as to borrow one to get next weeks lotto numbers, oh can you get the euro lottery numbers as well?

cant help with cancer though, that's an absolute g1t of an illness and ive seen too many family members and friends taken way too young by it. if you do get a time machine to borrow could you go further into the future to see if we can sort it out?

[quote][p][bold]Alicesdad[/bold] wrote:
Apologies for early morning pessimism.
So what would I look for to raise my spirits ?
- A press conference with the whole board, including Krueger, Reed and the other bloke who nobody ever remembers. They should deliver a clear statement of intent put the rumours into perspective.
- A statement from Ron stating that he has confidence that all is under control and he will build a strong team this season.
- A clear message, delivered personally, from the owner, that the commitment to maintaining and raising our status in the EPL is still in place and that the club is not for sale.
I also want to win the lottery, visit the Moon, cure cancer and one day see the discovery of intelligent extra terrestrial life.[/p][/quote]extra terrestrial life? well that's already been sorted for you, do you not remember sammy2sheds? think about that name for a min. its not 2sheds its 2`s heads! hes not been banned just taken back to the mother ship!
talk to beardy branson about the moon, hes got to space so its got to be the next step!
there are so many people on here who can se the future so well its obvious they have time machines, as to borrow one to get next weeks lotto numbers, oh can you get the euro lottery numbers as well?
cant help with cancer though, that's an absolute g1t of an illness and ive seen too many family members and friends taken way too young by it. if you do get a time machine to borrow could you go further into the future to see if we can sort it out?de Heiligen paard 101

Alicesdad wrote…

Apologies for early morning pessimism.

So what would I look for to raise my spirits ?

- A press conference with the whole board, including Krueger, Reed and the other bloke who nobody ever remembers. They should deliver a clear statement of intent put the rumours into perspective.
- A statement from Ron stating that he has confidence that all is under control and he will build a strong team this season.
- A clear message, delivered personally, from the owner, that the commitment to maintaining and raising our status in the EPL is still in place and that the club is not for sale.

I also want to win the lottery, visit the Moon, cure cancer and one day see the discovery of intelligent extra terrestrial life.

extra terrestrial life? well that's already been sorted for you, do you not remember sammy2sheds? think about that name for a min. its not 2sheds its 2`s heads! hes not been banned just taken back to the mother ship!

talk to beardy branson about the moon, hes got to space so its got to be the next step!

there are so many people on here who can se the future so well its obvious they have time machines, as to borrow one to get next weeks lotto numbers, oh can you get the euro lottery numbers as well?

cant help with cancer though, that's an absolute g1t of an illness and ive seen too many family members and friends taken way too young by it. if you do get a time machine to borrow could you go further into the future to see if we can sort it out?

Score: 2

damoose
9:28am Tue 29 Jul 14

A few months after buying Southampton he bailed out a struggling printing company in Bern, saving 50 jobs and those of 72 apprentices and becoming known as the "Wifag saviour".

After his death at the age of 62 in August 2010 and the subsequent inheritance of Mali Holdings by Katharina, she decided to make 31 employees redundant and has since been accused of failing to set a new direction for the company.

The Swiss newspaper Der Bund said that while Mali initially said that Katharina would continue her father's work, "it has become increasingly clear in recent months that Mali can't sort out the successorship".

One employee at Wifag was quoted saying: "With the death of the patron, the chicken has lost its head. For a while it continued wandering around without a sense of direction, then it bled to death."

Sounds Familiar

A few months after buying Southampton he bailed out a struggling printing company in Bern, saving 50 jobs and those of 72 apprentices and becoming known as the "Wifag saviour".
After his death at the age of 62 in August 2010 and the subsequent inheritance of Mali Holdings by Katharina, she decided to make 31 employees redundant and has since been accused of failing to set a new direction for the company.
The Swiss newspaper Der Bund said that while Mali initially said that Katharina would continue her father's work, "it has become increasingly clear in recent months that Mali can't sort out the successorship".
One employee at Wifag was quoted saying: "With the death of the patron, the chicken has lost its head. For a while it continued wandering around without a sense of direction, then it bled to death."
Sounds Familiardamoose

A few months after buying Southampton he bailed out a struggling printing company in Bern, saving 50 jobs and those of 72 apprentices and becoming known as the "Wifag saviour".

After his death at the age of 62 in August 2010 and the subsequent inheritance of Mali Holdings by Katharina, she decided to make 31 employees redundant and has since been accused of failing to set a new direction for the company.

The Swiss newspaper Der Bund said that while Mali initially said that Katharina would continue her father's work, "it has become increasingly clear in recent months that Mali can't sort out the successorship".

One employee at Wifag was quoted saying: "With the death of the patron, the chicken has lost its head. For a while it continued wandering around without a sense of direction, then it bled to death."

Sounds Familiar

Score: 14

steekeemcglue
9:29am Tue 29 Jul 14

50 Years A Supporter wrote…

I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it!

you are having a laugh as are all those saying we are in a "relegation" scrap... you obviously know naff all about football. Take a look at the other clubs , take a look at their teams/squads..... £100M will steady the ship and allow us to build stability and a team on Ron's terms and lets look at his track record so far .... he has identified two quality players ..... and secured their services. These are not players who would have signed for a team threatened with relegation, they are players who would have signed up for a team building phase and there will be more.

[quote][p][bold]50 Years A Supporter[/bold] wrote:
I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it![/p][/quote]you are having a laugh as are all those saying we are in a "relegation" scrap... you obviously know naff all about football. Take a look at the other clubs , take a look at their teams/squads..... £100M will steady the ship and allow us to build stability and a team on Ron's terms and lets look at his track record so far .... he has identified two quality players ..... and secured their services. These are not players who would have signed for a team threatened with relegation, they are players who would have signed up for a team building phase and there will be more.steekeemcglue

50 Years A Supporter wrote…

I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it!

you are having a laugh as are all those saying we are in a "relegation" scrap... you obviously know naff all about football. Take a look at the other clubs , take a look at their teams/squads..... £100M will steady the ship and allow us to build stability and a team on Ron's terms and lets look at his track record so far .... he has identified two quality players ..... and secured their services. These are not players who would have signed for a team threatened with relegation, they are players who would have signed up for a team building phase and there will be more.

Score: -5

A36saint
9:29am Tue 29 Jul 14

BarnetSaint wrote…

In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.

Why the thumbs down ? This is a totally reasonable comment. I can't understand why people are still living in a dream world thinking all is ok. Hoping for a quick sale and get us back on track

[quote][p][bold]BarnetSaint[/bold] wrote:
In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.[/p][/quote]Why the thumbs down ? This is a totally reasonable comment. I can't understand why people are still living in a dream world thinking all is ok. Hoping for a quick sale and get us back on trackA36saint

BarnetSaint wrote…

In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.

Why the thumbs down ? This is a totally reasonable comment. I can't understand why people are still living in a dream world thinking all is ok. Hoping for a quick sale and get us back on track

Score: 12

GX Saint
9:30am Tue 29 Jul 14

50 Years A Supporter wrote…

I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it!

You can't keep players who want to leave. The board had them on long term contracts but that just ensures we get a decent fee for them. Remember Kenwyne Jones? He said he'd refuse to play until he was sold. So be realistic - players and their agents choose where and when they go. The board's duty was to tie them up on long term contracts and hold out for the maximum fee. That's what I suspect they have done and are doing.

RK has a hell of a job on his hands to bring the right talent in and get them gelling with the squad but what we're watching here is just business. To describe is as a 'policy of selling the best players' is to mis-characterise it. If someone makes you an offer for a possession that is far higher than its real worth, what's disgusting about taking their money?

[quote][p][bold]50 Years A Supporter[/bold] wrote:
I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it![/p][/quote]You can't keep players who want to leave. The board had them on long term contracts but that just ensures we get a decent fee for them. Remember Kenwyne Jones? He said he'd refuse to play until he was sold. So be realistic - players and their agents choose where and when they go. The board's duty was to tie them up on long term contracts and hold out for the maximum fee. That's what I suspect they have done and are doing.
RK has a hell of a job on his hands to bring the right talent in and get them gelling with the squad but what we're watching here is just business. To describe is as a 'policy of selling the best players' is to mis-characterise it. If someone makes you an offer for a possession that is far higher than its real worth, what's disgusting about taking their money?GX Saint

50 Years A Supporter wrote…

I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it!

You can't keep players who want to leave. The board had them on long term contracts but that just ensures we get a decent fee for them. Remember Kenwyne Jones? He said he'd refuse to play until he was sold. So be realistic - players and their agents choose where and when they go. The board's duty was to tie them up on long term contracts and hold out for the maximum fee. That's what I suspect they have done and are doing.

RK has a hell of a job on his hands to bring the right talent in and get them gelling with the squad but what we're watching here is just business. To describe is as a 'policy of selling the best players' is to mis-characterise it. If someone makes you an offer for a possession that is far higher than its real worth, what's disgusting about taking their money?

Score: -2

Stnana
9:30am Tue 29 Jul 14

jls217 wrote…

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks

Where's Strassie when we need him ?

[quote][p][bold]jls217[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Ozmosis[/bold] wrote:
You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:
http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/
As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.[/p][/quote]I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks[/p][/quote]Where's Strassie when we need him ?Stnana

jls217 wrote…

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks

Where's Strassie when we need him ?

Score: 2

george chivers
9:30am Tue 29 Jul 14

Alicesdad wrote…

Saw an advert on the Tube this morning for the Imperial War Museum commemorating the centenary of WW1. Since then there's a phrase that keeps going through my mind.

It'll all be over by Christmas.

Lest we Forget.

[quote][p][bold]Alicesdad[/bold] wrote:
Saw an advert on the Tube this morning for the Imperial War Museum commemorating the centenary of WW1. Since then there's a phrase that keeps going through my mind.
It'll all be over by Christmas.[/p][/quote]Lest we Forget.george chivers

Alicesdad wrote…

Saw an advert on the Tube this morning for the Imperial War Museum commemorating the centenary of WW1. Since then there's a phrase that keeps going through my mind.

It'll all be over by Christmas.

Lest we Forget.

Score: 2

jls217
9:31am Tue 29 Jul 14

Saintsayer II wrote…

Little Hitler Your post is excellently constructed and puts forward one possible scenario whilst ignoring others that are just as plausible Supposing Cortse was asked by Kat to oversee what is happening now ? Was that why he bailed out ? Perhaps he wanted to get us into the big time and then cash in because it seems transparent enough that cashing in is what Kat is doing now
Purchase price and transfers in amount to about £100m This summers transfers out could reach £150m added to the £85 from last season Then sell the club for a poultry £50 that gives a fantastic return on the
investment
Hopefully Cortese will be involved with the new owners because he did deliver on his promise. Much was made of the £30m transfer debt which was easily offset by the PL income which is guaranteed for 4 years with parachute payments
The last and scariest scenario is that Kat stays for 3 more years taking the parachute payments and allowing the club to return to L1 where it was when ML bought it

Hmm food for thought in the last para mate. If she really is hell bent on screwing Saints over (and let's face it most business people would screw over their own grannies for a couple of quid) there is a really scary scenario there because those parachute payments are hers to do with as she pleases. Unless of course there are stipulations and regulations limiting the use of those payments - Again maybe there are some money men on here who might have some insight into that.
Great point and not one I've seen raised before in this context. Scarey eh!?

[quote][p][bold]Saintsayer II[/bold] wrote:
Little Hitler Your post is excellently constructed and puts forward one possible scenario whilst ignoring others that are just as plausible Supposing Cortse was asked by Kat to oversee what is happening now ? Was that why he bailed out ? Perhaps he wanted to get us into the big time and then cash in because it seems transparent enough that cashing in is what Kat is doing now
Purchase price and transfers in amount to about £100m This summers transfers out could reach £150m added to the £85 from last season Then sell the club for a poultry £50 that gives a fantastic return on the
investment
Hopefully Cortese will be involved with the new owners because he did deliver on his promise. Much was made of the £30m transfer debt which was easily offset by the PL income which is guaranteed for 4 years with parachute payments
The last and scariest scenario is that Kat stays for 3 more years taking the parachute payments and allowing the club to return to L1 where it was when ML bought it[/p][/quote]Hmm food for thought in the last para mate. If she really is hell bent on screwing Saints over (and let's face it most business people would screw over their own grannies for a couple of quid) there is a really scary scenario there because those parachute payments are hers to do with as she pleases. Unless of course there are stipulations and regulations limiting the use of those payments - Again maybe there are some money men on here who might have some insight into that.
Great point and not one I've seen raised before in this context. Scarey eh!?jls217

Saintsayer II wrote…

Little Hitler Your post is excellently constructed and puts forward one possible scenario whilst ignoring others that are just as plausible Supposing Cortse was asked by Kat to oversee what is happening now ? Was that why he bailed out ? Perhaps he wanted to get us into the big time and then cash in because it seems transparent enough that cashing in is what Kat is doing now
Purchase price and transfers in amount to about £100m This summers transfers out could reach £150m added to the £85 from last season Then sell the club for a poultry £50 that gives a fantastic return on the
investment
Hopefully Cortese will be involved with the new owners because he did deliver on his promise. Much was made of the £30m transfer debt which was easily offset by the PL income which is guaranteed for 4 years with parachute payments
The last and scariest scenario is that Kat stays for 3 more years taking the parachute payments and allowing the club to return to L1 where it was when ML bought it

Hmm food for thought in the last para mate. If she really is hell bent on screwing Saints over (and let's face it most business people would screw over their own grannies for a couple of quid) there is a really scary scenario there because those parachute payments are hers to do with as she pleases. Unless of course there are stipulations and regulations limiting the use of those payments - Again maybe there are some money men on here who might have some insight into that.
Great point and not one I've seen raised before in this context. Scarey eh!?

Score: 4

Barney123
9:34am Tue 29 Jul 14

Matthew 7:26

Rings so true Saints fans!

Matthew 7:26
Rings so true Saints fans!Barney123

Matthew 7:26

Rings so true Saints fans!

Score: 3

jls217
9:34am Tue 29 Jul 14

u bunch of mugs wrote…

God what's happened to our fan base years ago we used to be full of passion for this great club and city now it's all what what old chap happy clap and in The board we trust ****.
When will you lot learn they don't give a **** about the club they just want the money.
This would not happen at any other club cause the fans wouldn't let it. Say what you like about the blue **** down the road but at least they have passion. Fu@k that hurt to say that

Mugs for the first time since reading your posts I'm beginning (just beginning mind) to think you might not be a skate plant after all. Apologies if you feel insulted.

[quote][p][bold]u bunch of mugs[/bold] wrote:
God what's happened to our fan base years ago we used to be full of passion for this great club and city now it's all what what old chap happy clap and in The board we trust ****.
When will you lot learn they don't give a **** about the club they just want the money.
This would not happen at any other club cause the fans wouldn't let it. Say what you like about the blue **** down the road but at least they have passion. Fu@k that hurt to say that[/p][/quote]Mugs for the first time since reading your posts I'm beginning (just beginning mind) to think you might not be a skate plant after all. Apologies if you feel insulted.jls217

u bunch of mugs wrote…

God what's happened to our fan base years ago we used to be full of passion for this great club and city now it's all what what old chap happy clap and in The board we trust ****.
When will you lot learn they don't give a **** about the club they just want the money.
This would not happen at any other club cause the fans wouldn't let it. Say what you like about the blue **** down the road but at least they have passion. Fu@k that hurt to say that

Mugs for the first time since reading your posts I'm beginning (just beginning mind) to think you might not be a skate plant after all. Apologies if you feel insulted.

Score: 7

THEKILLER
9:44am Tue 29 Jul 14

why would any player want to come here?
That is why the club are having difficulty signing players. The club has no ambition no direction . It is just a cash cow for Kat and other Board members

why would any player want to come here?
That is why the club are having difficulty signing players. The club has no ambition no direction . It is just a cash cow for Kat and other Board membersTHEKILLER

why would any player want to come here?
That is why the club are having difficulty signing players. The club has no ambition no direction . It is just a cash cow for Kat and other Board members

Score: 9

Mosin85
9:37am Tue 29 Jul 14

warrens 76 wrote…

arthur boutfaith wrote…

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.

Wishy washy, trusting this board has got us were exactly, never in the history of football has such a team been so ripped apart when not in financial difficulty. horrific..

but never before has a small club like Saints had so so many potential world class players on such such such small wages........

Board are helpless when players want to go for mega money while we offer pennies... just not going to happen getting upset with the board wont help matters and wont help the team.

just hope there are some decent players willing to play for pennies other wise its a long season.

The only players that will be willing to stay are the youngsters that support Southampton, and come on be honest we don't have many fans that's the reality of the club and some thing that needs to be built up by winning things but every time we do well the big teams will come and take all the good players which is why they will stay big clubs and the rest stay small....... unless KL invest at least 400 million so we can compete on wages and transfer's it will remain that way for the foreseeable future.

[quote][p][bold]warrens 76[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]arthur boutfaith[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.[/p][/quote]Wishy washy, trusting this board has got us were exactly, never in the history of football has such a team been so ripped apart when not in financial difficulty. horrific..[/p][/quote]but never before has a small club like Saints had so so many potential world class players on such such such small wages........
Board are helpless when players want to go for mega money while we offer pennies... just not going to happen getting upset with the board wont help matters and wont help the team.
just hope there are some decent players willing to play for pennies other wise its a long season.
The only players that will be willing to stay are the youngsters that support Southampton, and come on be honest we don't have many fans that's the reality of the club and some thing that needs to be built up by winning things but every time we do well the big teams will come and take all the good players which is why they will stay big clubs and the rest stay small....... unless KL invest at least 400 million so we can compete on wages and transfer's it will remain that way for the foreseeable future.Mosin85

warrens 76 wrote…

arthur boutfaith wrote…

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly written.
You're too good to get a job for this rag.

Wishy washy, trusting this board has got us were exactly, never in the history of football has such a team been so ripped apart when not in financial difficulty. horrific..

but never before has a small club like Saints had so so many potential world class players on such such such small wages........

Board are helpless when players want to go for mega money while we offer pennies... just not going to happen getting upset with the board wont help matters and wont help the team.

just hope there are some decent players willing to play for pennies other wise its a long season.

The only players that will be willing to stay are the youngsters that support Southampton, and come on be honest we don't have many fans that's the reality of the club and some thing that needs to be built up by winning things but every time we do well the big teams will come and take all the good players which is why they will stay big clubs and the rest stay small....... unless KL invest at least 400 million so we can compete on wages and transfer's it will remain that way for the foreseeable future.

Score: 2

andoru
9:37am Tue 29 Jul 14

Best thing about all this is that I can sign all of our players to my fantasy team. Usually you're restricted to three players from one team. I've replaced my original line up with all the players we've sold so far this summer, plus other former Saints Chris Baird, Walcott, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Peter Crouch and Puncheon. Morgan and J-Rod are in there as Saints players, but on the assumption they won't be for long. When they go I will use one of the available Saints slots to bring in Clyne for Vlaar in defence. Boruc is in there because there are no ex-Saints GKs in the Premier League. An all Saints team as far as possible. I will judge how well they do by the number of points they get me. I'm not changing the team for the rest of the season, unless we sell some more people in January.

Best thing about all this is that I can sign all of our players to my fantasy team. Usually you're restricted to three players from one team. I've replaced my original line up with all the players we've sold so far this summer, plus other former Saints Chris Baird, Walcott, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Peter Crouch and Puncheon. Morgan and J-Rod are in there as Saints players, but on the assumption they won't be for long. When they go I will use one of the available Saints slots to bring in Clyne for Vlaar in defence. Boruc is in there because there are no ex-Saints GKs in the Premier League. An all Saints team as far as possible. I will judge how well they do by the number of points they get me. I'm not changing the team for the rest of the season, unless we sell some more people in January.andoru

Best thing about all this is that I can sign all of our players to my fantasy team. Usually you're restricted to three players from one team. I've replaced my original line up with all the players we've sold so far this summer, plus other former Saints Chris Baird, Walcott, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Peter Crouch and Puncheon. Morgan and J-Rod are in there as Saints players, but on the assumption they won't be for long. When they go I will use one of the available Saints slots to bring in Clyne for Vlaar in defence. Boruc is in there because there are no ex-Saints GKs in the Premier League. An all Saints team as far as possible. I will judge how well they do by the number of points they get me. I'm not changing the team for the rest of the season, unless we sell some more people in January.

Score: 1

Dartom
9:44am Tue 29 Jul 14

I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.

I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.Dartom

I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.

Score: 4

de Heiligen paard 101
9:37am Tue 29 Jul 14

Strasbourg Saint wrote…

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

You could be right or wrong and so could the article (which seems to have been written as though it has some hard facts, where as most people are just guessing what exactly is going on). A different slant - 'the board are not to blame' - is provided here:
http://www.mirror.co

.uk/sport/football/n

ews/southampton-boar

d-cannot-blamed-exod

us-3926519
(thanks to whoever first shared it).

I think the Mirror article is partly right so far as it goes. What it doesn't do is question some of the decisions the board has taken which continue to baffle me (and, clearly, many others).
1. Why, in early Spring, did Ralph make that statement about the debt? (Which I've described before as being like putting a 'players for sale' sign outside SMS.)
2. Having then made it, why didn't he go on to clarify how much needed urgent action (probably under £10m) as opposed to the larger part which was being serviced through repayments over time?
3. Why, at the end of last season, didn't the board simply state that the first matter they would address was the managerial team? Once it was clear that MP was off with his chums (and I think we can all see now that he had taken that decision after NC left), surely the important thing was to bring in a new management team (and get the WC out of the way) BEFORE negotiating transfers in or out.
4. Why has communication and what I'll call 'promoting the vision' (sic) been so badly handled?

I think - INDIVIDUALLY - there's a case for each and every player sale. (Top money for the young fullbacks, Rickie to his boyhood team, others wanting bigger pay days and European football - which Saints can't offer right now - Osvaldo needing to be moved on ......) but there comes a point when selling a player now (because the individual income will never be as high again once the length of that player's contract dwindles or having left that player in the reserves to rot as a punishment ....) has too great an impact on the speculated future finances and projected progress of the Club.

We can all see that £100m in the bank would end up as confetti if the club was relegated and, even if/when that money is spent on new players, there's no guarantee that they'll blend into a team (note Spuds last season).

So, rather than spit the dummy, as others have chosen to do - and it's their right - I will wait and see (like Little Hitler above). Once the dust settles, once we know who has come in (and the task of attracting players in has been made far more difficult by all of this no matter where the blame lies) and once we have a clearer idea where Ron and his team are leading us, then I'll judge.

For now, I will continue to support my team, I will EXPECT the board and manager to deliver us out of this mess for which the blame IMO is shared between everyone involved (NC, MP, current board, players, agents, media, Premier League set up ....) and I will try to understand those fans who see things differently.

In the end, we all share a couple of things:
1. a passion for the Saints
2. a sense of anger and disbelief - probably, as with me, resulting in waking early most mornings plagued by this matter.

Chin up, folks, please let's try to put this into perspective (and I'm speaking to myself here). When you see some of the things currently unfolding across the world, our collective nightmare really isn't what Bill Shankly famously described as 'more important than life or death'.

well said strass. we are all trying to figure out what is going on and none of us know. when/if we start to bring in new players will be the time we know more of the clubs `ambition`. I don't buy into any of the wild theories that some keep banging on about, but yes I`m still worried, well until I see some improvement.
as you said each player sale can be justified individually but putting them together as a whole a do struggle to see the bigger picture. I don't think any of us are happy with whats gone on, and even though some players have made it clear they think they are bigger than the club, it doesn't stop me from having a kind of hollow feeling inside
I will still show my full support to whatever team is chosen to play and will always do that! we all cheered the kids and supported them when we were relegated from the championship, we all cheered and supported the mercenaries put together by redkrapp so we will do the same this season.

[quote][p][bold]Strasbourg Saint[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Ozmosis[/bold] wrote:
You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:
http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/
As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.[/p][/quote]You could be right or wrong and so could the article (which seems to have been written as though it has some hard facts, where as most people are just guessing what exactly is going on). A different slant - 'the board are not to blame' - is provided here:
http://www.mirror.co
.uk/sport/football/n
ews/southampton-boar
d-cannot-blamed-exod
us-3926519
(thanks to whoever first shared it).
I think the Mirror article is partly right so far as it goes. What it doesn't do is question some of the decisions the board has taken which continue to baffle me (and, clearly, many others).
1. Why, in early Spring, did Ralph make that statement about the debt? (Which I've described before as being like putting a 'players for sale' sign outside SMS.)
2. Having then made it, why didn't he go on to clarify how much needed urgent action (probably under £10m) as opposed to the larger part which was being serviced through repayments over time?
3. Why, at the end of last season, didn't the board simply state that the first matter they would address was the managerial team? Once it was clear that MP was off with his chums (and I think we can all see now that he had taken that decision after NC left), surely the important thing was to bring in a new management team (and get the WC out of the way) BEFORE negotiating transfers in or out.
4. Why has communication and what I'll call 'promoting the vision' (sic) been so badly handled?
I think - INDIVIDUALLY - there's a case for each and every player sale. (Top money for the young fullbacks, Rickie to his boyhood team, others wanting bigger pay days and European football - which Saints can't offer right now - Osvaldo needing to be moved on ......) but there comes a point when selling a player now (because the individual income will never be as high again once the length of that player's contract dwindles or having left that player in the reserves to rot as a punishment ....) has too great an impact on the speculated future finances and projected progress of the Club.
We can all see that £100m in the bank would end up as confetti if the club was relegated and, even if/when that money is spent on new players, there's no guarantee that they'll blend into a team (note Spuds last season).
So, rather than spit the dummy, as others have chosen to do - and it's their right - I will wait and see (like Little Hitler above). Once the dust settles, once we know who has come in (and the task of attracting players in has been made far more difficult by all of this no matter where the blame lies) and once we have a clearer idea where Ron and his team are leading us, then I'll judge.
For now, I will continue to support my team, I will EXPECT the board and manager to deliver us out of this mess for which the blame IMO is shared between everyone involved (NC, MP, current board, players, agents, media, Premier League set up ....) and I will try to understand those fans who see things differently.
In the end, we all share a couple of things:
1. a passion for the Saints
2. a sense of anger and disbelief - probably, as with me, resulting in waking early most mornings plagued by this matter.
Chin up, folks, please let's try to put this into perspective (and I'm speaking to myself here). When you see some of the things currently unfolding across the world, our collective nightmare really isn't what Bill Shankly famously described as 'more important than life or death'.[/p][/quote]well said strass. we are all trying to figure out what is going on and none of us know. when/if we start to bring in new players will be the time we know more of the clubs `ambition`. I don't buy into any of the wild theories that some keep banging on about, but yes I`m still worried, well until I see some improvement.
as you said each player sale can be justified individually but putting them together as a whole a do struggle to see the bigger picture. I don't think any of us are happy with whats gone on, and even though some players have made it clear they think they are bigger than the club, it doesn't stop me from having a kind of hollow feeling inside
I will still show my full support to whatever team is chosen to play and will always do that! we all cheered the kids and supported them when we were relegated from the championship, we all cheered and supported the mercenaries put together by redkrapp so we will do the same this season.de Heiligen paard 101

Strasbourg Saint wrote…

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

You could be right or wrong and so could the article (which seems to have been written as though it has some hard facts, where as most people are just guessing what exactly is going on). A different slant - 'the board are not to blame' - is provided here:
http://www.mirror.co

.uk/sport/football/n

ews/southampton-boar

d-cannot-blamed-exod

us-3926519
(thanks to whoever first shared it).

I think the Mirror article is partly right so far as it goes. What it doesn't do is question some of the decisions the board has taken which continue to baffle me (and, clearly, many others).
1. Why, in early Spring, did Ralph make that statement about the debt? (Which I've described before as being like putting a 'players for sale' sign outside SMS.)
2. Having then made it, why didn't he go on to clarify how much needed urgent action (probably under £10m) as opposed to the larger part which was being serviced through repayments over time?
3. Why, at the end of last season, didn't the board simply state that the first matter they would address was the managerial team? Once it was clear that MP was off with his chums (and I think we can all see now that he had taken that decision after NC left), surely the important thing was to bring in a new management team (and get the WC out of the way) BEFORE negotiating transfers in or out.
4. Why has communication and what I'll call 'promoting the vision' (sic) been so badly handled?

I think - INDIVIDUALLY - there's a case for each and every player sale. (Top money for the young fullbacks, Rickie to his boyhood team, others wanting bigger pay days and European football - which Saints can't offer right now - Osvaldo needing to be moved on ......) but there comes a point when selling a player now (because the individual income will never be as high again once the length of that player's contract dwindles or having left that player in the reserves to rot as a punishment ....) has too great an impact on the speculated future finances and projected progress of the Club.

We can all see that £100m in the bank would end up as confetti if the club was relegated and, even if/when that money is spent on new players, there's no guarantee that they'll blend into a team (note Spuds last season).

So, rather than spit the dummy, as others have chosen to do - and it's their right - I will wait and see (like Little Hitler above). Once the dust settles, once we know who has come in (and the task of attracting players in has been made far more difficult by all of this no matter where the blame lies) and once we have a clearer idea where Ron and his team are leading us, then I'll judge.

For now, I will continue to support my team, I will EXPECT the board and manager to deliver us out of this mess for which the blame IMO is shared between everyone involved (NC, MP, current board, players, agents, media, Premier League set up ....) and I will try to understand those fans who see things differently.

In the end, we all share a couple of things:
1. a passion for the Saints
2. a sense of anger and disbelief - probably, as with me, resulting in waking early most mornings plagued by this matter.

Chin up, folks, please let's try to put this into perspective (and I'm speaking to myself here). When you see some of the things currently unfolding across the world, our collective nightmare really isn't what Bill Shankly famously described as 'more important than life or death'.

well said strass. we are all trying to figure out what is going on and none of us know. when/if we start to bring in new players will be the time we know more of the clubs `ambition`. I don't buy into any of the wild theories that some keep banging on about, but yes I`m still worried, well until I see some improvement.
as you said each player sale can be justified individually but putting them together as a whole a do struggle to see the bigger picture. I don't think any of us are happy with whats gone on, and even though some players have made it clear they think they are bigger than the club, it doesn't stop me from having a kind of hollow feeling inside
I will still show my full support to whatever team is chosen to play and will always do that! we all cheered the kids and supported them when we were relegated from the championship, we all cheered and supported the mercenaries put together by redkrapp so we will do the same this season.

Score: 0

one in the crowd
9:38am Tue 29 Jul 14

The people who post that everything will be alright because Saints have £100M + to spend are living in cloud cuckoo land.

There is absolutely no guarantee that even a small amount of the huge sum will be spent during this transfer window, if it was then you should be seeing new players but your not !

The people who post that everything will be alright because Saints have £100M + to spend are living in cloud cuckoo land.
There is absolutely no guarantee that even a small amount of the huge sum will be spent during this transfer window, if it was then you should be seeing new players but your not !one in the crowd

The people who post that everything will be alright because Saints have £100M + to spend are living in cloud cuckoo land.

There is absolutely no guarantee that even a small amount of the huge sum will be spent during this transfer window, if it was then you should be seeing new players but your not !

Score: 4

jls217
9:38am Tue 29 Jul 14

Confucious wrote…

The happy clappers on here won't like me reminding them, but over four years ago I posted this:

"Plenty of euphoria on here today, but mark my words, the appointment of Pardew is very bad news. Ok he may win the JPT or something, but then he'll be fired - leading to the appointment of a little known lower Div manager - eg Adkins at Scunny. You will all cheer when Adkins wins two successive promotions, but he'll hit the dust a few months later as Nicola brings in a suspect foreigner of the likes of Pochettinho at Espanyol. More cheering as he will keep us up and then get an eighth or better position.

"But ask yourselves...will Nichola last?....will Pochettinho stay?...and if not will there be a complete debacle and nightmare player exodus? 'No, No, No' I heard you say (especially Seed who was ecstatic and building a metaphorical flat up Nicola's @rse at the time).

"Well - come back and tell me that in July 2014." I concluded.

Some hope - you're all on my bandwagon now. We're doomed.

Of course at the time I was derided and branded a neggie for this. But where are you now?

Branding you as the finest soothsayer Saints fans are ever likely to behold only the neggies amongst us are claiming you're full of it and want a statement.

[quote][p][bold]Confucious[/bold] wrote:
The happy clappers on here won't like me reminding them, but over four years ago I posted this:
"Plenty of euphoria on here today, but mark my words, the appointment of Pardew is very bad news. Ok he may win the JPT or something, but then he'll be fired - leading to the appointment of a little known lower Div manager - eg Adkins at Scunny. You will all cheer when Adkins wins two successive promotions, but he'll hit the dust a few months later as Nicola brings in a suspect foreigner of the likes of Pochettinho at Espanyol. More cheering as he will keep us up and then get an eighth or better position.
"But ask yourselves...will Nichola last?....will Pochettinho stay?...and if not will there be a complete debacle and nightmare player exodus? 'No, No, No' I heard you say (especially Seed who was ecstatic and building a metaphorical flat up Nicola's @rse at the time).
"Well - come back and tell me that in July 2014." I concluded.
Some hope - you're all on my bandwagon now. We're doomed.
Of course at the time I was derided and branded a neggie for this. But where are you now?[/p][/quote]Branding you as the finest soothsayer Saints fans are ever likely to behold only the neggies amongst us are claiming you're full of it and want a statement.jls217

Confucious wrote…

The happy clappers on here won't like me reminding them, but over four years ago I posted this:

"Plenty of euphoria on here today, but mark my words, the appointment of Pardew is very bad news. Ok he may win the JPT or something, but then he'll be fired - leading to the appointment of a little known lower Div manager - eg Adkins at Scunny. You will all cheer when Adkins wins two successive promotions, but he'll hit the dust a few months later as Nicola brings in a suspect foreigner of the likes of Pochettinho at Espanyol. More cheering as he will keep us up and then get an eighth or better position.

"But ask yourselves...will Nichola last?....will Pochettinho stay?...and if not will there be a complete debacle and nightmare player exodus? 'No, No, No' I heard you say (especially Seed who was ecstatic and building a metaphorical flat up Nicola's @rse at the time).

"Well - come back and tell me that in July 2014." I concluded.

Some hope - you're all on my bandwagon now. We're doomed.

Of course at the time I was derided and branded a neggie for this. But where are you now?

Branding you as the finest soothsayer Saints fans are ever likely to behold only the neggies amongst us are claiming you're full of it and want a statement.

Score: 0

miltonarcher
9:40am Tue 29 Jul 14

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.
Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.miltonarcher

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Score: 3

steekeemcglue
9:40am Tue 29 Jul 14

PMSL at those who think Cortese will be "back".... if its not a no-brainer on a plate he won't touch it with a barge pole.... he would not have a clue how to progress Saints from this position and RK would not work with him.

PMSL at those who think Cortese will be "back".... if its not a no-brainer on a plate he won't touch it with a barge pole.... he would not have a clue how to progress Saints from this position and RK would not work with him.steekeemcglue

PMSL at those who think Cortese will be "back".... if its not a no-brainer on a plate he won't touch it with a barge pole.... he would not have a clue how to progress Saints from this position and RK would not work with him.

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.

We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.

[quote][p][bold]miltonarcher[/bold] wrote:
Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.
Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.[/p][/quote]Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.
We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.Confucious

miltonarcher wrote…

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.

We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.

Score: 5

OSPREYSAINT
9:46am Tue 29 Jul 14

Dartom wrote…

I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.

I am just a fungi.

[quote][p][bold]Dartom[/bold] wrote:
I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.[/p][/quote]I am just a fungi.OSPREYSAINT

Dartom wrote…

I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.

I am just a fungi.

Score: 4

Strasbourg Saint
9:50am Tue 29 Jul 14

Stnana wrote…

jls217 wrote…

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks

Where's Strassie when we need him ?

Ha! Better to ask Killared or ElsassSaint. Their French is much better than mine.

In short, from what I could make out, the article 'Southampton Is For Sale' says that Katharina's plan is to sell the club.

It gives a brief history of the club's rise (through Markus) from L1 and who Ralph is, and is written with the assumption that Morgan and Jay ARE off to Spuds (although mentions that Morgan could unit with fellow Alsatian, Arsene Wenger. It talks about the fallout between NC and KL. It even suggests that the fans (but NOT the DE) saw NC as 'omnipotent' - it's done its research.

It goes on to talk about Christian Purslow (the one none of can remember the name of) and his roll, and compares us to the way Villa and Reading have been sold.

It concludes with some positives about possible incoming players, mostly from our feeder club in Glasgow.

I hope that helps and that our French fans will forgive any errors in my 'resumé'.

[quote][p][bold]Stnana[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]jls217[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Ozmosis[/bold] wrote:
You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:
http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/
As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.[/p][/quote]I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks[/p][/quote]Where's Strassie when we need him ?[/p][/quote]Ha! Better to ask Killared or ElsassSaint. Their French is much better than mine.
In short, from what I could make out, the article 'Southampton Is For Sale' says that Katharina's plan is to sell the club.
It gives a brief history of the club's rise (through Markus) from L1 and who Ralph is, and is written with the assumption that Morgan and Jay ARE off to Spuds (although mentions that Morgan could unit with fellow Alsatian, Arsene Wenger. It talks about the fallout between NC and KL. It even suggests that the fans (but NOT the DE) saw NC as 'omnipotent' - it's done its research.
It goes on to talk about Christian Purslow (the one none of can remember the name of) and his roll, and compares us to the way Villa and Reading have been sold.
It concludes with some positives about possible incoming players, mostly from our feeder club in Glasgow.
I hope that helps and that our French fans will forgive any errors in my 'resumé'.Strasbourg Saint

Stnana wrote…

jls217 wrote…

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks

Where's Strassie when we need him ?

Ha! Better to ask Killared or ElsassSaint. Their French is much better than mine.

In short, from what I could make out, the article 'Southampton Is For Sale' says that Katharina's plan is to sell the club.

It gives a brief history of the club's rise (through Markus) from L1 and who Ralph is, and is written with the assumption that Morgan and Jay ARE off to Spuds (although mentions that Morgan could unit with fellow Alsatian, Arsene Wenger. It talks about the fallout between NC and KL. It even suggests that the fans (but NOT the DE) saw NC as 'omnipotent' - it's done its research.

It goes on to talk about Christian Purslow (the one none of can remember the name of) and his roll, and compares us to the way Villa and Reading have been sold.

It concludes with some positives about possible incoming players, mostly from our feeder club in Glasgow.

I hope that helps and that our French fans will forgive any errors in my 'resumé'.

Score: 5

OSPREYSAINT
9:51am Tue 29 Jul 14

miltonarcher wrote…

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Sorry, but I have paid for my ticket and I want to watch Leverkusen, not bothered if the other side doesn't turn up because they haven't got any players left.

[quote][p][bold]miltonarcher[/bold] wrote:
Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.
Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.[/p][/quote]Sorry, but I have paid for my ticket and I want to watch Leverkusen, not bothered if the other side doesn't turn up because they haven't got any players left.OSPREYSAINT

miltonarcher wrote…

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Sorry, but I have paid for my ticket and I want to watch Leverkusen, not bothered if the other side doesn't turn up because they haven't got any players left.

Score: 0

Basildonsaint
9:53am Tue 29 Jul 14

From the Dell to St Mary's for 50 years good times and bad I as all of you love my club with passion and loyalty. If any of our outgoing players felt the same way then we would not be in this position. If a player wants to leave then sulks, throws his toys out the pram then what can the board do other than let him go for the best price possible.
I just think it is disgusting how these players are treating the FANS and the CLUB which made them who they are today.
Let's show them all we are SOUTHAMPTON!! And as so many times before WE SHALL OVERCOME!

From the Dell to St Mary's for 50 years good times and bad I as all of you love my club with passion and loyalty. If any of our outgoing players felt the same way then we would not be in this position. If a player wants to leave then sulks, throws his toys out the pram then what can the board do other than let him go for the best price possible.
I just think it is disgusting how these players are treating the FANS and the CLUB which made them who they are today.
Let's show them all we are SOUTHAMPTON!! And as so many times before WE SHALL OVERCOME!Basildonsaint

From the Dell to St Mary's for 50 years good times and bad I as all of you love my club with passion and loyalty. If any of our outgoing players felt the same way then we would not be in this position. If a player wants to leave then sulks, throws his toys out the pram then what can the board do other than let him go for the best price possible.
I just think it is disgusting how these players are treating the FANS and the CLUB which made them who they are today.
Let's show them all we are SOUTHAMPTON!! And as so many times before WE SHALL OVERCOME!

Score: 1

OSPREYSAINT
10:27am Tue 29 Jul 14

redsnapper wrote…

There are some media articles protecting the Board. SO WRONG

3 months ago we had the most all together and most talented young squad in the Prem, when we won, when they scored the celebrations and high 5's were 100% genuine and all inclusive. The future was bight and it was indelibly red and white.

Then along came the World Cup, the players all flew off in different directions and Les and Ralph completely lost the plot, and now the squad has been destructively dismantled

Sorry but The Board have already had their chance, and they have completely and utterly ****ed it up.

Not done yet though is it? Are you sure that RonKo isn't planning to sign only his own choices and getting rid of those that he doesn't want? It is just one of many theories still being bandied about. The rest of what you say has been repeated over and over and we still have not the faintest idea of what is really going on.

[quote][p][bold]redsnapper[/bold] wrote:
There are some media articles protecting the Board. SO WRONG
3 months ago we had the most all together and most talented young squad in the Prem, when we won, when they scored the celebrations and high 5's were 100% genuine and all inclusive. The future was bight and it was indelibly red and white.
Then along came the World Cup, the players all flew off in different directions and Les and Ralph completely lost the plot, and now the squad has been destructively dismantled
Sorry but The Board have already had their chance, and they have completely and utterly ****ed it up.[/p][/quote]Not done yet though is it? Are you sure that RonKo isn't planning to sign only his own choices and getting rid of those that he doesn't want? It is just one of many theories still being bandied about. The rest of what you say has been repeated over and over and we still have not the faintest idea of what is really going on.OSPREYSAINT

redsnapper wrote…

There are some media articles protecting the Board. SO WRONG

3 months ago we had the most all together and most talented young squad in the Prem, when we won, when they scored the celebrations and high 5's were 100% genuine and all inclusive. The future was bight and it was indelibly red and white.

Then along came the World Cup, the players all flew off in different directions and Les and Ralph completely lost the plot, and now the squad has been destructively dismantled

Sorry but The Board have already had their chance, and they have completely and utterly ****ed it up.

Not done yet though is it? Are you sure that RonKo isn't planning to sign only his own choices and getting rid of those that he doesn't want? It is just one of many theories still being bandied about. The rest of what you say has been repeated over and over and we still have not the faintest idea of what is really going on.

Score: 0

OSPREYSAINT
9:56am Tue 29 Jul 14

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Gadzooks Carruthers, it would appear that the natives are revolting.

If you ask me Fanshawe, those neggies have always been revolting.

[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
Gadzooks Carruthers, it would appear that the natives are revolting.[/p][/quote]If you ask me Fanshawe, those neggies have always been revolting.OSPREYSAINT

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Gadzooks Carruthers, it would appear that the natives are revolting.

If you ask me Fanshawe, those neggies have always been revolting.

Score: -3

Strasbourg Saint
9:56am Tue 29 Jul 14

Dubsaint wrote…

Dubsaint wrote…

Below is good article imo and worthy of a read however depressing....

http://www.mirror.co

.uk/sport/football/n

ews/southampton-boar

d-cannot-blamed-exod

us-3926519

Apologies - I see article already discussed above........

No need to apologise, I think we should all read it, whatever our opinion. It's one important aspect, but of course, there are others.

[quote][p][bold]Dubsaint[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Dubsaint[/bold] wrote:
Below is good article imo and worthy of a read however depressing....
http://www.mirror.co
.uk/sport/football/n
ews/southampton-boar
d-cannot-blamed-exod
us-3926519[/p][/quote]Apologies - I see article already discussed above........[/p][/quote]No need to apologise, I think we should all read it, whatever our opinion. It's one important aspect, but of course, there are others.Strasbourg Saint

Dubsaint wrote…

Dubsaint wrote…

Below is good article imo and worthy of a read however depressing....

http://www.mirror.co

.uk/sport/football/n

ews/southampton-boar

d-cannot-blamed-exod

us-3926519

Apologies - I see article already discussed above........

No need to apologise, I think we should all read it, whatever our opinion. It's one important aspect, but of course, there are others.

Score: 3

forestboy1
9:56am Tue 29 Jul 14

Les Reed is not fit for purpose, he speaks with fork tongue, he say are policy is to keep are young players and sells them all, he has put us back at least two years.
He must go!

Les Reed is not fit for purpose, he speaks with fork tongue, he say are policy is to keep are young players and sells them all, he has put us back at least two years.
He must go!forestboy1

Les Reed is not fit for purpose, he speaks with fork tongue, he say are policy is to keep are young players and sells them all, he has put us back at least two years.
He must go!

Score: 1

donni1437
9:59am Tue 29 Jul 14

Ironic that the one player the clubs wants to leave is still at the club.

Ironic that the one player the clubs wants to leave is still at the club.donni1437

Ironic that the one player the clubs wants to leave is still at the club.

Score: 13

Keith Olbermann
9:58am Tue 29 Jul 14

All the sales up to Lovren could be adequately explained away by "want away stars" who were "enticed by big money and silverware".

...but Chambers, and now Schneiderlin and JRod!?

Nah, ****. This is more consistent with stuff happening behind the scenes that we can't see. Either the players are jumping ship because they know the **** that's happening, OR, more probably, they're being pushed out the door.

My money is that we're being asset stripped to lower the valuation of the club in order to attract buyers.

All the sales up to Lovren could be adequately explained away by "want away stars" who were "enticed by big money and silverware".
...but Chambers, and now Schneiderlin and JRod!?
Nah, ****. This is more consistent with stuff happening behind the scenes that we can't see. Either the players are jumping ship because they know the **** that's happening, OR, more probably, they're being pushed out the door.
My money is that we're being asset stripped to lower the valuation of the club in order to attract buyers.Keith Olbermann

All the sales up to Lovren could be adequately explained away by "want away stars" who were "enticed by big money and silverware".

...but Chambers, and now Schneiderlin and JRod!?

Nah, ****. This is more consistent with stuff happening behind the scenes that we can't see. Either the players are jumping ship because they know the **** that's happening, OR, more probably, they're being pushed out the door.

My money is that we're being asset stripped to lower the valuation of the club in order to attract buyers.

Score: 12

fascia123
9:59am Tue 29 Jul 14

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Well said.

[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]Well said.fascia123

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Well said.

Score: 0

saintbobby
10:01am Tue 29 Jul 14

Simon, this site has never been as busy as it has been over the last 48 hours and it takes absolutely ages to read everything.

One thing though, Poch is after Spider and Jay. Now the Board has put a price on Spider of £27 million (as reported). Based on other sales I assume Jay has to be priced about the same. So that means The Spuds will need to cough up something like £55-60 million to sign them both.

Well, that IS a lot of money and if they go we shall be very well off. On the other hand I just do not see Spuds paying that sort of money. The Spider price is reported to be as set by the Board and so must be true. Our Board NEVER lies, does it?

I have quoted before "where will it all end"? I, for one, just do not know.

Simon, this site has never been as busy as it has been over the last 48 hours and it takes absolutely ages to read everything.
One thing though, Poch is after Spider and Jay. Now the Board has put a price on Spider of £27 million (as reported). Based on other sales I assume Jay has to be priced about the same. So that means The Spuds will need to cough up something like £55-60 million to sign them both.
Well, that IS a lot of money and if they go we shall be very well off. On the other hand I just do not see Spuds paying that sort of money. The Spider price is reported to be as set by the Board and so must be true. Our Board NEVER lies, does it?
I have quoted before "where will it all end"? I, for one, just do not know.saintbobby

Simon, this site has never been as busy as it has been over the last 48 hours and it takes absolutely ages to read everything.

One thing though, Poch is after Spider and Jay. Now the Board has put a price on Spider of £27 million (as reported). Based on other sales I assume Jay has to be priced about the same. So that means The Spuds will need to cough up something like £55-60 million to sign them both.

Well, that IS a lot of money and if they go we shall be very well off. On the other hand I just do not see Spuds paying that sort of money. The Spider price is reported to be as set by the Board and so must be true. Our Board NEVER lies, does it?

I have quoted before "where will it all end"? I, for one, just do not know.

Score: 8

george chivers
10:00am Tue 29 Jul 14

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly and articulately written. I wonder if the club's PR team take the time to read these threads. If they, do, they ignore them, I'm sure of that.

I am interested in three things.

1) Will all the income from player sales be re-invested in new players?

Personally I don't think it will. I think KL is owed money by the club because of NC's financial indiscretions. Which, I think, were acted out in the time frame between ML's death and the end of his contract. Not when ML was alive, which would indicate he didn't have ML's authority to overspend on Wanyama and Osvaldo. And I think she will recover that money. My guess is about £30M, although she may not take it in one go.

2) Is she interested in owning and operating a professional club? Again, just a guess. I don't think she is. I also don't think she has an obligation follow in her father's foot steps.

3) Will she continue to own the club and sell off young players as they become established in the first team squad? Or will she build the club up into a mid table position over one or two seasons and then sell it off having made it attractive to a rich investor? Again I think the latter, but it is only a guess.

What I want to see from her, and I'm not interested in statements from her board, is a statement of intent that shares her intent with us.

She may be the only financial share holder who is owed money. But we the supporters/fans/emot
ional shareholders of SFC and we are owed something as well. After all we are her customers!

We are owed some straight forward communication from the owner. And most of all we are all owed some respect.

[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]Brilliantly and articulately written. I wonder if the club's PR team take the time to read these threads. If they, do, they ignore them, I'm sure of that.
I am interested in three things.
1) Will all the income from player sales be re-invested in new players?
Personally I don't think it will. I think KL is owed money by the club because of NC's financial indiscretions. Which, I think, were acted out in the time frame between ML's death and the end of his contract. Not when ML was alive, which would indicate he didn't have ML's authority to overspend on Wanyama and Osvaldo. And I think she will recover that money. My guess is about £30M, although she may not take it in one go.
2) Is she interested in owning and operating a professional club? Again, just a guess. I don't think she is. I also don't think she has an obligation follow in her father's foot steps.
3) Will she continue to own the club and sell off young players as they become established in the first team squad? Or will she build the club up into a mid table position over one or two seasons and then sell it off having made it attractive to a rich investor? Again I think the latter, but it is only a guess.
What I want to see from her, and I'm not interested in statements from her board, is a statement of intent that shares her intent with us.
She may be the only financial share holder who is owed money. But we the supporters/fans/emot
ional shareholders of SFC and we are owed something as well. After all we are her customers!
We are owed some straight forward communication from the owner. And most of all we are all owed some respect.george chivers

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Brilliantly and articulately written. I wonder if the club's PR team take the time to read these threads. If they, do, they ignore them, I'm sure of that.

I am interested in three things.

1) Will all the income from player sales be re-invested in new players?

Personally I don't think it will. I think KL is owed money by the club because of NC's financial indiscretions. Which, I think, were acted out in the time frame between ML's death and the end of his contract. Not when ML was alive, which would indicate he didn't have ML's authority to overspend on Wanyama and Osvaldo. And I think she will recover that money. My guess is about £30M, although she may not take it in one go.

2) Is she interested in owning and operating a professional club? Again, just a guess. I don't think she is. I also don't think she has an obligation follow in her father's foot steps.

3) Will she continue to own the club and sell off young players as they become established in the first team squad? Or will she build the club up into a mid table position over one or two seasons and then sell it off having made it attractive to a rich investor? Again I think the latter, but it is only a guess.

What I want to see from her, and I'm not interested in statements from her board, is a statement of intent that shares her intent with us.

She may be the only financial share holder who is owed money. But we the supporters/fans/emot
ional shareholders of SFC and we are owed something as well. After all we are her customers!

We are owed some straight forward communication from the owner. And most of all we are all owed some respect.

Score: 6

Mosin85
10:05am Tue 29 Jul 14

milton road wrote…

Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,

000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.

you cant have been a Saints fan for long cause are history is full of being torn apart by the big clubs, we where while in league 1 and championship a big club, in the Premiership we are a small club that is reality, we are not playing with the small clubs any more we are playing with the big boys and big boys don't play fair and have big big huge pockets to offer huge wages which is a luxury we don't have have.

I don't blame the board for the players leaving i blame the players, Obviously the board would keep the players which is why they offered long term contracts, but as soon as the big teams come along and wave huge money under players noises they will leave cause the players that have left ARE NOT SOUTHAMPTON FANS and so will have no loyalty to Saints as they do not love Saints. to them its just a pay check till a bigger one comes along.

If the board do not reinvest the money back into the team then we can blame the board, until then my judgement is reserved until such a time comes in 5 weeks when the market closes.

Now think long term as the club grows, one thing we have over every club in the Premiership is a fantastic youth set up. we will always have that, the big clubs will always be giving us money, and in the mean time we grow as a club gaining more and more followers until such a time comes when we can stick two fingers up at the big clubs and challenge them on both wages and transfer budget. Rome was not built in a day and neither was Manchester united........... so to expect us to be built that fast in unrealistic.........
.......

[quote][p][bold]milton road[/bold] wrote:
Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,
000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.[/p][/quote]you cant have been a Saints fan for long cause are history is full of being torn apart by the big clubs, we where while in league 1 and championship a big club, in the Premiership we are a small club that is reality, we are not playing with the small clubs any more we are playing with the big boys and big boys don't play fair and have big big huge pockets to offer huge wages which is a luxury we don't have have.
I don't blame the board for the players leaving i blame the players, Obviously the board would keep the players which is why they offered long term contracts, but as soon as the big teams come along and wave huge money under players noises they will leave cause the players that have left ARE NOT SOUTHAMPTON FANS and so will have no loyalty to Saints as they do not love Saints. to them its just a pay check till a bigger one comes along.
If the board do not reinvest the money back into the team then we can blame the board, until then my judgement is reserved until such a time comes in 5 weeks when the market closes.
Now think long term as the club grows, one thing we have over every club in the Premiership is a fantastic youth set up. we will always have that, the big clubs will always be giving us money, and in the mean time we grow as a club gaining more and more followers until such a time comes when we can stick two fingers up at the big clubs and challenge them on both wages and transfer budget. Rome was not built in a day and neither was Manchester united........... so to expect us to be built that fast in unrealistic.........
.......Mosin85

milton road wrote…

Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,

000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.

you cant have been a Saints fan for long cause are history is full of being torn apart by the big clubs, we where while in league 1 and championship a big club, in the Premiership we are a small club that is reality, we are not playing with the small clubs any more we are playing with the big boys and big boys don't play fair and have big big huge pockets to offer huge wages which is a luxury we don't have have.

I don't blame the board for the players leaving i blame the players, Obviously the board would keep the players which is why they offered long term contracts, but as soon as the big teams come along and wave huge money under players noises they will leave cause the players that have left ARE NOT SOUTHAMPTON FANS and so will have no loyalty to Saints as they do not love Saints. to them its just a pay check till a bigger one comes along.

If the board do not reinvest the money back into the team then we can blame the board, until then my judgement is reserved until such a time comes in 5 weeks when the market closes.

Now think long term as the club grows, one thing we have over every club in the Premiership is a fantastic youth set up. we will always have that, the big clubs will always be giving us money, and in the mean time we grow as a club gaining more and more followers until such a time comes when we can stick two fingers up at the big clubs and challenge them on both wages and transfer budget. Rome was not built in a day and neither was Manchester united........... so to expect us to be built that fast in unrealistic.........
.......

Score: 10

fascia123
10:05am Tue 29 Jul 14

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Well said sir.

I can understand the frustrations but some of the comments on this site are ridiculous.

The players rightly or wrongly have shown no loyalty to the club, the club has got the best price they could for the players.

Perhaps Cortese maverick business style is really too blame for our current position and not the owner or the board.

Give them chance to prove themselves.

[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]Well said sir.
I can understand the frustrations but some of the comments on this site are ridiculous.
The players rightly or wrongly have shown no loyalty to the club, the club has got the best price they could for the players.
Perhaps Cortese maverick business style is really too blame for our current position and not the owner or the board.
Give them chance to prove themselves.fascia123

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Well said sir.

I can understand the frustrations but some of the comments on this site are ridiculous.

The players rightly or wrongly have shown no loyalty to the club, the club has got the best price they could for the players.

Perhaps Cortese maverick business style is really too blame for our current position and not the owner or the board.

Give them chance to prove themselves.

Score: 1

OSPREYSAINT
10:06am Tue 29 Jul 14

Seems as if fat cat Luke Shaw is having fitness problems at Manure, having to train on his own to get his fitness up to snuff.

Seems as if fat cat Luke Shaw is having fitness problems at Manure, having to train on his own to get his fitness up to snuff.OSPREYSAINT

Seems as if fat cat Luke Shaw is having fitness problems at Manure, having to train on his own to get his fitness up to snuff.

Score: 5

Ozmosis
10:10am Tue 29 Jul 14

jls217 wrote…

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks

I used Google Translate - it's not brilliant but you get the jist. Wht your post is downvoted is quite beyond me!

[quote][p][bold]jls217[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Ozmosis[/bold] wrote:
You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:
http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/
As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.[/p][/quote]I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks[/p][/quote]I used Google Translate - it's not brilliant but you get the jist. Wht your post is downvoted is quite beyond me!Ozmosis

jls217 wrote…

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I'd like to read that article Ozmosis - Is there an English language version of it avail on their site (or elsewhere) Thanks

I used Google Translate - it's not brilliant but you get the jist. Wht your post is downvoted is quite beyond me!

Score: 3

de Heiligen paard 101
10:11am Tue 29 Jul 14

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Seems as if fat cat Luke Shaw is having fitness problems at Manure, having to train on his own to get his fitness up to snuff.

too many burger kings and not enough threesomes! oh I do feel for the poor boy!

[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
Seems as if fat cat Luke Shaw is having fitness problems at Manure, having to train on his own to get his fitness up to snuff.[/p][/quote]too many burger kings and not enough threesomes! oh I do feel for the poor boy!de Heiligen paard 101

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Seems as if fat cat Luke Shaw is having fitness problems at Manure, having to train on his own to get his fitness up to snuff.

too many burger kings and not enough threesomes! oh I do feel for the poor boy!

Score: 4

OSPREYSAINT
10:12am Tue 29 Jul 14

THEKILLER wrote…

why would any player want to come here?
That is why the club are having difficulty signing players. The club has no ambition no direction . It is just a cash cow for Kat and other Board members

You will have to ask the right people for an answer to that, try Pelle and Tadic, could it be the money talking?

[quote][p][bold]THEKILLER[/bold] wrote:
why would any player want to come here?
That is why the club are having difficulty signing players. The club has no ambition no direction . It is just a cash cow for Kat and other Board members[/p][/quote]You will have to ask the right people for an answer to that, try Pelle and Tadic, could it be the money talking?OSPREYSAINT

THEKILLER wrote…

why would any player want to come here?
That is why the club are having difficulty signing players. The club has no ambition no direction . It is just a cash cow for Kat and other Board members

You will have to ask the right people for an answer to that, try Pelle and Tadic, could it be the money talking?

Score: -1

powerfullpierre
10:39am Tue 29 Jul 14

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Thank you for this well written articulate article. The most informative article I have seen anywhere on this subject.Makes a refreshing change from the lame Liverhampton jokes and even worse the abusive posts. I feel less despondent after reading this. Lets hope no more players leave.

[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]Thank you for this well written articulate article. The most informative article I have seen anywhere on this subject.Makes a refreshing change from the lame Liverhampton jokes and even worse the abusive posts. I feel less despondent after reading this. Lets hope no more players leave.powerfullpierre

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

Thank you for this well written articulate article. The most informative article I have seen anywhere on this subject.Makes a refreshing change from the lame Liverhampton jokes and even worse the abusive posts. I feel less despondent after reading this. Lets hope no more players leave.

Score: 8

Invidia
12:05pm Tue 29 Jul 14

The only positive that I can see in all this mayhem is that Osprey is in his element and trying to answer every post on here but with so man posts is failing miserably, he is certainly enjoying this disaster.

The only positive that I can see in all this mayhem is that Osprey is in his element and trying to answer every post on here but with so man posts is failing miserably, he is certainly enjoying this disaster.Invidia

The only positive that I can see in all this mayhem is that Osprey is in his element and trying to answer every post on here but with so man posts is failing miserably, he is certainly enjoying this disaster.

Score: -5

WalkingOnAWire
12:50pm Tue 29 Jul 14

St.Yorkie wrote…

Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.

You haven't tried very hard, have you? Do you think Karren Brady would agree with you? I wish we had her as a chief exec.

[quote][p][bold]St.Yorkie[/bold] wrote:
Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.[/p][/quote]You haven't tried very hard, have you? Do you think Karren Brady would agree with you? I wish we had her as a chief exec.WalkingOnAWire

St.Yorkie wrote…

Heart of the team ripped out?
Seems to me as someone already pointed out Lambert was an integral part of the "Southampton Way" and with him the loyalty and team ethic left!
Can't blame players or Katrina cashing in for £millions. Makes the £13m for the club 5-years ago look a very sound investment. Look at the returns from last year alone. What was it? £63-million from SKY and another £70-million+ for players this summer alone!
The trouble is the next level requires serious money - and trying not to be too sexist - it's a mans game! She inherited her fathers legacy and far from letting Cortese run amok reigned him in!
We move on.

You haven't tried very hard, have you? Do you think Karren Brady would agree with you? I wish we had her as a chief exec.

Score: 2

Lehman Bros Banker
10:17am Tue 29 Jul 14

This was the team first game of last season away to WBA: Boruc, Chambers, Lovren, Fonte, Shaw, Schneiderlin, Lallana, Wanyama, Ward-Prowse, Lambert and Rodriguez. Who could have imagined the guts would have been ripped out of this team in just twelve months?

Ralph Kreuger? More like Freddy Kreuger. Not Nightmare on Elm Street but Nightmare on Britannia Street, and when the going gets tough Ralph gets going. It really is quite disgraceful that he should choose this critical time when the club is seemingly conducting a fire sale to leave the country and remove himself from any media responsibility. That duty has seemingly been delegated to Les Reed but after what he has said there cannot be any Saints fan now willing to trust the stated intentions of the Club as regards the players.

I trust it is just paper talk that we are being linked with Karl Jenkinson of Arsenal because that shoots down the stated intent to replace those we let go with better footballers. As if Wenger has got that one wrong!

In the absence of any statement from the Club to the contrary, it must be presumed that all this transfer activity getting players off the books is a prelude to the sale of Southampton Football Club.

Like father like daughter? Sadly not.

This was the team first game of last season away to WBA: Boruc, Chambers, Lovren, Fonte, Shaw, Schneiderlin, Lallana, Wanyama, Ward-Prowse, Lambert and Rodriguez. Who could have imagined the guts would have been ripped out of this team in just twelve months?
Ralph Kreuger? More like Freddy Kreuger. Not Nightmare on Elm Street but Nightmare on Britannia Street, and when the going gets tough Ralph gets going. It really is quite disgraceful that he should choose this critical time when the club is seemingly conducting a fire sale to leave the country and remove himself from any media responsibility. That duty has seemingly been delegated to Les Reed but after what he has said there cannot be any Saints fan now willing to trust the stated intentions of the Club as regards the players.
I trust it is just paper talk that we are being linked with Karl Jenkinson of Arsenal because that shoots down the stated intent to replace those we let go with better footballers. As if Wenger has got that one wrong!
In the absence of any statement from the Club to the contrary, it must be presumed that all this transfer activity getting players off the books is a prelude to the sale of Southampton Football Club.
Like father like daughter? Sadly not.Lehman Bros Banker

This was the team first game of last season away to WBA: Boruc, Chambers, Lovren, Fonte, Shaw, Schneiderlin, Lallana, Wanyama, Ward-Prowse, Lambert and Rodriguez. Who could have imagined the guts would have been ripped out of this team in just twelve months?

Ralph Kreuger? More like Freddy Kreuger. Not Nightmare on Elm Street but Nightmare on Britannia Street, and when the going gets tough Ralph gets going. It really is quite disgraceful that he should choose this critical time when the club is seemingly conducting a fire sale to leave the country and remove himself from any media responsibility. That duty has seemingly been delegated to Les Reed but after what he has said there cannot be any Saints fan now willing to trust the stated intentions of the Club as regards the players.

I trust it is just paper talk that we are being linked with Karl Jenkinson of Arsenal because that shoots down the stated intent to replace those we let go with better footballers. As if Wenger has got that one wrong!

In the absence of any statement from the Club to the contrary, it must be presumed that all this transfer activity getting players off the books is a prelude to the sale of Southampton Football Club.

Like father like daughter? Sadly not.

Score: 8

Churchill Saint
4:53pm Tue 29 Jul 14

de Heiligen paard 101 wrote…

Churchill Saint,

I`m not going t click quote on your post because it makes the whole thread longer than its should be, but I do have a few points to put to your very interesting theory.

firstly, we don't know if KL is a very successful business woman at all. we don't know much about her or her life. she took control of the mali group of companies and has nothing, apart from family ties, to do with the liebherr group!
since taking control of the mali group, after her fathers sad passing, she has closed a printing firm that st markus desperately tried to save but the mali group said they couldn't. she and NC have both resigned from the boards of the companies, however believe she still owns them (cant find anything that says otherwise) and the only board that she looks to be on is DMWSL 613 the holding company of saints fc.
it looks like she has put people with a lot of experience in charge of running the companies in the mali group, perhaps she realised she didn't have the expertise to run them?
so why would she quit from all her fathers other businesses but not saints? does she in fact have a strong feeling towards the club passed on by St Markus? saying she has no interest in football would be ok f she hadn't turned up at almost every home game and some away after NC quit. she also seemed to be enjoying it.
the best time to have sold, if she wanted to, would have been at the end of the season, whilst we still had our major assets. seing the players may have raised some money but it reduces t companies value drastically, villa have very few major assets (big money players) and they have been for sale for ages and have even reduced the asking price and yet they have had no offers. villa have a bigger name than us and a bigger stadium so what makes you think that there are a long or even short list of billionaires ready to spend a lot of money to buy the club and then invest a small fortune in the playing squad. an investor would surely want to buy a club with the majority of its major assets still there as if they waned to they could then sell the `assets` to recoup their initial investment, like poopeys long line of false buyers did!
you don't know what les reed was told to do and you have no idea of his payment structure, just like the rest of us. you have to remember that les reed has been here for 4yrs+ and despite what some say has done a good job, he is the reason that so many academy players are making it though to the first team, it is his youth policy that the club are following. why would he risk the good name he has built for himself here by destroying his good work? yes I know people will look at his history and say hes been poor wherever he has been but they fail to mention that he wrote the youth policy handbook that the fa still use. maybe he needed a club brave enough to follow his plans? that's what he got here! hasn't done too bad at getting the kids into the first team has he?
how do you know that les went to arsenil to offer chambers? you don't you just invented it to suit your theory. if he did why would arsenil pay over the top? no player has been forced to leave, they have all either asked to go or thrown toys out their cots to get their moves. if we went round offering the players to clubs why have we managed to get such high fees? fees that even people in the football world are saying is too much? your saying they offered the players around and then they are saying they don't want to sell as a bluff to get more money. so did les go arsenil and say `we want you to buy chambers but don't want to sell him to you`? makes no sense!
wenger might have said it was a risk to buy chambers for so much but no one forced him into it! it was a risk he was willing to take and it and its worth taking because hes a product of our youth system.

i dont know why you think that us sports owners want to buy prem teams, some are owned buy the same people but the clubs have very few links, manure are owned by the tampa bay bucs owners but have links with new york giants, selling each others kits etc.

perhaps the echo have been investigating whats going on but have found no truth in any of your theory as it just doesnt hold any water. ben smith of the bbc is a well known NC fan and NC uses him to leak stuff and he is one of the few `journalists` that NC talks to, thats why he knows what has happend, NC told him! NC did the deals that let some of these players go so he must have known that once one or two go others will follow! he told luke he could go, not on any KL money making list! he told dejerk he could go for a £20mill offer, no kl money making list! isnt it strange that liverhampton knew to bid £20mill? where would they have got that figure?

as i say there a quite a few holes in your theory but then you knew that, didnt you?
i hope you are way off the mark as getting new owners could be very bad for the club, as has been seen at other clubs. i personally think KL is quite happy to keep the club going but doesnt want to invest the huge amount of money that NC would have needed to carry on his dream plan. i think she wants the club to be self reliant, so by rasing money from players who dont want to be here she is funding the future of the club, transfer fees and wages will be able to go up now. the training ground was never a £30mill debt, it was always paid in stages, thats how construction works. the club didnt take out any loans to pay for it. so money that was diverted to that will also now be availible in other areas, improve/increase sms would be a good way to go.
as i say i hope yoour wrong and that im right but i might not be as i know nothing more than anyone else, well apart from the wums who see £30mill and think that needs to be paid in one go out of the sales!

You are right, I don't know any of these things. I am just trying to make intelligent suppositions based on all the evidence out, having filtered out all of the obvious carp. I really do hope I am wrong! But, I just can't think of any other reason why Chambers was sold. I would love to hear a better explanation. Any suggestions?
As I said, I think KL will try to cash in twice; once by selling the top players and second by selling the club. She's probably worked our that after tax her return is higher this way.
I guess the litmus test will whether or not MS and JR are sold this window. If they are it rather confirms my theory; if not then that would be the best news this summer.

[quote][p][bold]de Heiligen paard 101[/bold] wrote:
Churchill Saint,
I`m not going t click quote on your post because it makes the whole thread longer than its should be, but I do have a few points to put to your very interesting theory.
firstly, we don't know if KL is a very successful business woman at all. we don't know much about her or her life. she took control of the mali group of companies and has nothing, apart from family ties, to do with the liebherr group!
since taking control of the mali group, after her fathers sad passing, she has closed a printing firm that st markus desperately tried to save but the mali group said they couldn't. she and NC have both resigned from the boards of the companies, however believe she still owns them (cant find anything that says otherwise) and the only board that she looks to be on is DMWSL 613 the holding company of saints fc.
it looks like she has put people with a lot of experience in charge of running the companies in the mali group, perhaps she realised she didn't have the expertise to run them?
so why would she quit from all her fathers other businesses but not saints? does she in fact have a strong feeling towards the club passed on by St Markus? saying she has no interest in football would be ok f she hadn't turned up at almost every home game and some away after NC quit. she also seemed to be enjoying it.
the best time to have sold, if she wanted to, would have been at the end of the season, whilst we still had our major assets. seing the players may have raised some money but it reduces t companies value drastically, villa have very few major assets (big money players) and they have been for sale for ages and have even reduced the asking price and yet they have had no offers. villa have a bigger name than us and a bigger stadium so what makes you think that there are a long or even short list of billionaires ready to spend a lot of money to buy the club and then invest a small fortune in the playing squad. an investor would surely want to buy a club with the majority of its major assets still there as if they waned to they could then sell the `assets` to recoup their initial investment, like poopeys long line of false buyers did!
you don't know what les reed was told to do and you have no idea of his payment structure, just like the rest of us. you have to remember that les reed has been here for 4yrs+ and despite what some say has done a good job, he is the reason that so many academy players are making it though to the first team, it is his youth policy that the club are following. why would he risk the good name he has built for himself here by destroying his good work? yes I know people will look at his history and say hes been poor wherever he has been but they fail to mention that he wrote the youth policy handbook that the fa still use. maybe he needed a club brave enough to follow his plans? that's what he got here! hasn't done too bad at getting the kids into the first team has he?
how do you know that les went to arsenil to offer chambers? you don't you just invented it to suit your theory. if he did why would arsenil pay over the top? no player has been forced to leave, they have all either asked to go or thrown toys out their cots to get their moves. if we went round offering the players to clubs why have we managed to get such high fees? fees that even people in the football world are saying is too much? your saying they offered the players around and then they are saying they don't want to sell as a bluff to get more money. so did les go arsenil and say `we want you to buy chambers but don't want to sell him to you`? makes no sense!
wenger might have said it was a risk to buy chambers for so much but no one forced him into it! it was a risk he was willing to take and it and its worth taking because hes a product of our youth system.
i dont know why you think that us sports owners want to buy prem teams, some are owned buy the same people but the clubs have very few links, manure are owned by the tampa bay bucs owners but have links with new york giants, selling each others kits etc.
perhaps the echo have been investigating whats going on but have found no truth in any of your theory as it just doesnt hold any water. ben smith of the bbc is a well known NC fan and NC uses him to leak stuff and he is one of the few `journalists` that NC talks to, thats why he knows what has happend, NC told him! NC did the deals that let some of these players go so he must have known that once one or two go others will follow! he told luke he could go, not on any KL money making list! he told dejerk he could go for a £20mill offer, no kl money making list! isnt it strange that liverhampton knew to bid £20mill? where would they have got that figure?
as i say there a quite a few holes in your theory but then you knew that, didnt you?
i hope you are way off the mark as getting new owners could be very bad for the club, as has been seen at other clubs. i personally think KL is quite happy to keep the club going but doesnt want to invest the huge amount of money that NC would have needed to carry on his dream plan. i think she wants the club to be self reliant, so by rasing money from players who dont want to be here she is funding the future of the club, transfer fees and wages will be able to go up now. the training ground was never a £30mill debt, it was always paid in stages, thats how construction works. the club didnt take out any loans to pay for it. so money that was diverted to that will also now be availible in other areas, improve/increase sms would be a good way to go.
as i say i hope yoour wrong and that im right but i might not be as i know nothing more than anyone else, well apart from the wums who see £30mill and think that needs to be paid in one go out of the sales![/p][/quote]You are right, I don't know any of these things. I am just trying to make intelligent suppositions based on all the evidence out, having filtered out all of the obvious carp. I really do hope I am wrong! But, I just can't think of any other reason why Chambers was sold. I would love to hear a better explanation. Any suggestions?
As I said, I think KL will try to cash in twice; once by selling the top players and second by selling the club. She's probably worked our that after tax her return is higher this way.
I guess the litmus test will whether or not MS and JR are sold this window. If they are it rather confirms my theory; if not then that would be the best news this summer.Churchill Saint

de Heiligen paard 101 wrote…

Churchill Saint,

I`m not going t click quote on your post because it makes the whole thread longer than its should be, but I do have a few points to put to your very interesting theory.

firstly, we don't know if KL is a very successful business woman at all. we don't know much about her or her life. she took control of the mali group of companies and has nothing, apart from family ties, to do with the liebherr group!
since taking control of the mali group, after her fathers sad passing, she has closed a printing firm that st markus desperately tried to save but the mali group said they couldn't. she and NC have both resigned from the boards of the companies, however believe she still owns them (cant find anything that says otherwise) and the only board that she looks to be on is DMWSL 613 the holding company of saints fc.
it looks like she has put people with a lot of experience in charge of running the companies in the mali group, perhaps she realised she didn't have the expertise to run them?
so why would she quit from all her fathers other businesses but not saints? does she in fact have a strong feeling towards the club passed on by St Markus? saying she has no interest in football would be ok f she hadn't turned up at almost every home game and some away after NC quit. she also seemed to be enjoying it.
the best time to have sold, if she wanted to, would have been at the end of the season, whilst we still had our major assets. seing the players may have raised some money but it reduces t companies value drastically, villa have very few major assets (big money players) and they have been for sale for ages and have even reduced the asking price and yet they have had no offers. villa have a bigger name than us and a bigger stadium so what makes you think that there are a long or even short list of billionaires ready to spend a lot of money to buy the club and then invest a small fortune in the playing squad. an investor would surely want to buy a club with the majority of its major assets still there as if they waned to they could then sell the `assets` to recoup their initial investment, like poopeys long line of false buyers did!
you don't know what les reed was told to do and you have no idea of his payment structure, just like the rest of us. you have to remember that les reed has been here for 4yrs+ and despite what some say has done a good job, he is the reason that so many academy players are making it though to the first team, it is his youth policy that the club are following. why would he risk the good name he has built for himself here by destroying his good work? yes I know people will look at his history and say hes been poor wherever he has been but they fail to mention that he wrote the youth policy handbook that the fa still use. maybe he needed a club brave enough to follow his plans? that's what he got here! hasn't done too bad at getting the kids into the first team has he?
how do you know that les went to arsenil to offer chambers? you don't you just invented it to suit your theory. if he did why would arsenil pay over the top? no player has been forced to leave, they have all either asked to go or thrown toys out their cots to get their moves. if we went round offering the players to clubs why have we managed to get such high fees? fees that even people in the football world are saying is too much? your saying they offered the players around and then they are saying they don't want to sell as a bluff to get more money. so did les go arsenil and say `we want you to buy chambers but don't want to sell him to you`? makes no sense!
wenger might have said it was a risk to buy chambers for so much but no one forced him into it! it was a risk he was willing to take and it and its worth taking because hes a product of our youth system.

i dont know why you think that us sports owners want to buy prem teams, some are owned buy the same people but the clubs have very few links, manure are owned by the tampa bay bucs owners but have links with new york giants, selling each others kits etc.

perhaps the echo have been investigating whats going on but have found no truth in any of your theory as it just doesnt hold any water. ben smith of the bbc is a well known NC fan and NC uses him to leak stuff and he is one of the few `journalists` that NC talks to, thats why he knows what has happend, NC told him! NC did the deals that let some of these players go so he must have known that once one or two go others will follow! he told luke he could go, not on any KL money making list! he told dejerk he could go for a £20mill offer, no kl money making list! isnt it strange that liverhampton knew to bid £20mill? where would they have got that figure?

as i say there a quite a few holes in your theory but then you knew that, didnt you?
i hope you are way off the mark as getting new owners could be very bad for the club, as has been seen at other clubs. i personally think KL is quite happy to keep the club going but doesnt want to invest the huge amount of money that NC would have needed to carry on his dream plan. i think she wants the club to be self reliant, so by rasing money from players who dont want to be here she is funding the future of the club, transfer fees and wages will be able to go up now. the training ground was never a £30mill debt, it was always paid in stages, thats how construction works. the club didnt take out any loans to pay for it. so money that was diverted to that will also now be availible in other areas, improve/increase sms would be a good way to go.
as i say i hope yoour wrong and that im right but i might not be as i know nothing more than anyone else, well apart from the wums who see £30mill and think that needs to be paid in one go out of the sales!

You are right, I don't know any of these things. I am just trying to make intelligent suppositions based on all the evidence out, having filtered out all of the obvious carp. I really do hope I am wrong! But, I just can't think of any other reason why Chambers was sold. I would love to hear a better explanation. Any suggestions?
As I said, I think KL will try to cash in twice; once by selling the top players and second by selling the club. She's probably worked our that after tax her return is higher this way.
I guess the litmus test will whether or not MS and JR are sold this window. If they are it rather confirms my theory; if not then that would be the best news this summer.

Score: -1

redsnapper
10:19am Tue 29 Jul 14

There are some media articles protecting the Board. SO WRONG

3 months ago we had the most all together and most talented young squad in the Prem, when we won, when they scored the celebrations and high 5's were 100% genuine and all inclusive. The future was bight and it was indelibly red and white.

Then along came the World Cup, the players all flew off in different directions and Les and Ralph completely lost the plot, and now the squad has been destructively dismantled

Sorry but The Board have already had their chance, and they have completely and utterly ****ed it up.

There are some media articles protecting the Board. SO WRONG
3 months ago we had the most all together and most talented young squad in the Prem, when we won, when they scored the celebrations and high 5's were 100% genuine and all inclusive. The future was bight and it was indelibly red and white.
Then along came the World Cup, the players all flew off in different directions and Les and Ralph completely lost the plot, and now the squad has been destructively dismantled
Sorry but The Board have already had their chance, and they have completely and utterly ****ed it up.redsnapper

There are some media articles protecting the Board. SO WRONG

3 months ago we had the most all together and most talented young squad in the Prem, when we won, when they scored the celebrations and high 5's were 100% genuine and all inclusive. The future was bight and it was indelibly red and white.

Then along came the World Cup, the players all flew off in different directions and Les and Ralph completely lost the plot, and now the squad has been destructively dismantled

Sorry but The Board have already had their chance, and they have completely and utterly ****ed it up.

Its as plain as plain can be. The club is being lined up for a sale with all the family jewels having been sold off. Cortese saw this. and left perhaps ready for a buy back.

Its as plain as plain can be. The club is being lined up for a sale with all the family jewels having been sold off. Cortese saw this. and left perhaps ready for a buy back.truelysaints

Its as plain as plain can be. The club is being lined up for a sale with all the family jewels having been sold off. Cortese saw this. and left perhaps ready for a buy back.

Score: 3

Mosin85
10:25am Tue 29 Jul 14

Norwegian Saint wrote…

I cringe at opening the football internet pages now, just a couple of months ago I was proudly showing my work colleagues the write ups we had and a smile everytime I saw the league table but now I feel a little hollow.

OK, I didn't expect all our players to stay, I was happy for Rickie, I was understandable at Shaw, I was disappointed in Adam... but then... Ronald comes in and gives us hope, 2 good signings with only the 3 gone... I can live with that. Then Lov(himself)ren and Chambers leave within 24hrs of each other and maybe followed by my favorite player Schneiderlin and probably J-Rod.
It hurts being a Saints fan at the moment. Feeling like I've been punched in the stomach everyday with people leaving and lies.
The club seems to be in the worst position since the dark Lord days. Les is becoming a joke and is turning our club into one. These are the worst times for 5 years and us LOYAL fans deserve more answers than "be patient"... sorry Fat Les, that doesn't cut it. Look at Villa, they are in need of money but have come out fighting to keep their player (Vlaar)... where have we fought with a statement of intent? WHERE?!
Thinking forward I am optimistic that our new batch of kids will learn fast and players like Reed will flourish. This season I just want survival and build on next year, anything top half will be a miracle the after this... do we believe in miracles???

and do you really think if Van Gaal ( manchester united ) came knocking on Villa's door asking for Vlaar he wouldn't hand in a transfer request and force a move? hahahaha your living in dream land sir.....

Thing is BIG clubs want are players, big clubs dont want villa's........ they been a fav for relegation for 2 years in a row why would a big club want any of them players? villa to southampton?? hmm both clubs are about the same size you could argue that Villa are a bigger club than saints........ so he is not likely to force a move is he

[quote][p][bold]Norwegian Saint[/bold] wrote:
I cringe at opening the football internet pages now, just a couple of months ago I was proudly showing my work colleagues the write ups we had and a smile everytime I saw the league table but now I feel a little hollow.
OK, I didn't expect all our players to stay, I was happy for Rickie, I was understandable at Shaw, I was disappointed in Adam... but then... Ronald comes in and gives us hope, 2 good signings with only the 3 gone... I can live with that. Then Lov(himself)ren and Chambers leave within 24hrs of each other and maybe followed by my favorite player Schneiderlin and probably J-Rod.
It hurts being a Saints fan at the moment. Feeling like I've been punched in the stomach everyday with people leaving and lies.
The club seems to be in the worst position since the dark Lord days. Les is becoming a joke and is turning our club into one. These are the worst times for 5 years and us LOYAL fans deserve more answers than "be patient"... sorry Fat Les, that doesn't cut it. Look at Villa, they are in need of money but have come out fighting to keep their player (Vlaar)... where have we fought with a statement of intent? WHERE?!
Thinking forward I am optimistic that our new batch of kids will learn fast and players like Reed will flourish. This season I just want survival and build on next year, anything top half will be a miracle the after this... do we believe in miracles???[/p][/quote]and do you really think if Van Gaal ( manchester united ) came knocking on Villa's door asking for Vlaar he wouldn't hand in a transfer request and force a move? hahahaha your living in dream land sir.....
Thing is BIG clubs want are players, big clubs dont want villa's........ they been a fav for relegation for 2 years in a row why would a big club want any of them players? villa to southampton?? hmm both clubs are about the same size you could argue that Villa are a bigger club than saints........ so he is not likely to force a move is heMosin85

Norwegian Saint wrote…

I cringe at opening the football internet pages now, just a couple of months ago I was proudly showing my work colleagues the write ups we had and a smile everytime I saw the league table but now I feel a little hollow.

OK, I didn't expect all our players to stay, I was happy for Rickie, I was understandable at Shaw, I was disappointed in Adam... but then... Ronald comes in and gives us hope, 2 good signings with only the 3 gone... I can live with that. Then Lov(himself)ren and Chambers leave within 24hrs of each other and maybe followed by my favorite player Schneiderlin and probably J-Rod.
It hurts being a Saints fan at the moment. Feeling like I've been punched in the stomach everyday with people leaving and lies.
The club seems to be in the worst position since the dark Lord days. Les is becoming a joke and is turning our club into one. These are the worst times for 5 years and us LOYAL fans deserve more answers than "be patient"... sorry Fat Les, that doesn't cut it. Look at Villa, they are in need of money but have come out fighting to keep their player (Vlaar)... where have we fought with a statement of intent? WHERE?!
Thinking forward I am optimistic that our new batch of kids will learn fast and players like Reed will flourish. This season I just want survival and build on next year, anything top half will be a miracle the after this... do we believe in miracles???

and do you really think if Van Gaal ( manchester united ) came knocking on Villa's door asking for Vlaar he wouldn't hand in a transfer request and force a move? hahahaha your living in dream land sir.....

Thing is BIG clubs want are players, big clubs dont want villa's........ they been a fav for relegation for 2 years in a row why would a big club want any of them players? villa to southampton?? hmm both clubs are about the same size you could argue that Villa are a bigger club than saints........ so he is not likely to force a move is he

Score: 7

miltonarcher
10:27am Tue 29 Jul 14

Confucious wrote…

miltonarcher wrote…

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.

We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.

Its not the empty stadium, for a meaningless match, that will discourage prospective new signings, its the lack of vision and commitment by the Board to take the club to the next level.

A protest would at least show the fans care passionately about what is happening, and that might just encourage players to sign for SFC .

Having invested 30 million in the new training facilities at Staplewood your suggestion that we could burn it down is perhaps a little extreme, are you a frustrated pyromaniac, or just frustrated?

[quote][p][bold]Confucious[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]miltonarcher[/bold] wrote:
Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.
Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.[/p][/quote]Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.
We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.[/p][/quote]Its not the empty stadium, for a meaningless match, that will discourage prospective new signings, its the lack of vision and commitment by the Board to take the club to the next level.
A protest would at least show the fans care passionately about what is happening, and that might just encourage players to sign for SFC .
Having invested 30 million in the new training facilities at Staplewood your suggestion that we could burn it down is perhaps a little extreme, are you a frustrated pyromaniac, or just frustrated?miltonarcher

Confucious wrote…

miltonarcher wrote…

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.

We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.

Its not the empty stadium, for a meaningless match, that will discourage prospective new signings, its the lack of vision and commitment by the Board to take the club to the next level.

A protest would at least show the fans care passionately about what is happening, and that might just encourage players to sign for SFC .

Having invested 30 million in the new training facilities at Staplewood your suggestion that we could burn it down is perhaps a little extreme, are you a frustrated pyromaniac, or just frustrated?

Score: -3

the cowman
10:30am Tue 29 Jul 14

BarnetSaint wrote…

In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.

Anyone who advocates new ownership had best be careful what they wish for. There is no guarantee that any new owner would have passion, commitment and financial clout. Ask Cardiff and Hull fans what they think of their owners.
Nicola had his wings clipped and did not like it so moved on. The chances of finding someone like Nicola who had their own money instead of someone else's is pretty slim.
I think it is far to early to judge what has happened at the club, the players want to leave in droves, I think partly because the dream they were sold is almost impossible to achieve with the Saints, but for most it has nothing to do with winning things its about bank balances. Everyone apart from Rickie has gone for cash. If Morgan and Jay go to Spurs it won't be to win things, because how many trophies have Spurs won in the last few years.

[quote][p][bold]BarnetSaint[/bold] wrote:
In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.[/p][/quote]Anyone who advocates new ownership had best be careful what they wish for. There is no guarantee that any new owner would have passion, commitment and financial clout. Ask Cardiff and Hull fans what they think of their owners.
Nicola had his wings clipped and did not like it so moved on. The chances of finding someone like Nicola who had their own money instead of someone else's is pretty slim.
I think it is far to early to judge what has happened at the club, the players want to leave in droves, I think partly because the dream they were sold is almost impossible to achieve with the Saints, but for most it has nothing to do with winning things its about bank balances. Everyone apart from Rickie has gone for cash. If Morgan and Jay go to Spurs it won't be to win things, because how many trophies have Spurs won in the last few years.the cowman

BarnetSaint wrote…

In the cold light of day, our best hope is that she does sell the club, to someone with the passion, commitment and financial clout to realise the fantastic potential we have.
She is deconstructing all of the good work of her father and the sooner she leaves, taking the utter buffoons ( notably reed and the ice hockey bloke) mismanaging our affairs the better.
Our immediate goal are quality signings and to somehow survive this season , which is looking more unlikely by the day.
But we will bounce back.

Anyone who advocates new ownership had best be careful what they wish for. There is no guarantee that any new owner would have passion, commitment and financial clout. Ask Cardiff and Hull fans what they think of their owners.
Nicola had his wings clipped and did not like it so moved on. The chances of finding someone like Nicola who had their own money instead of someone else's is pretty slim.
I think it is far to early to judge what has happened at the club, the players want to leave in droves, I think partly because the dream they were sold is almost impossible to achieve with the Saints, but for most it has nothing to do with winning things its about bank balances. Everyone apart from Rickie has gone for cash. If Morgan and Jay go to Spurs it won't be to win things, because how many trophies have Spurs won in the last few years.

Score: 8

redandy10
10:34am Tue 29 Jul 14

It's not just that we are having our team ripped apart, it's the fact that new signings are a bit thin on the ground. The new season is around the corner, the guys in Escape to victory had more time to gel. Les seems to be quite efficient at closing sales, but not so with purchases.

DISGRACEFUL!!!

It's not just that we are having our team ripped apart, it's the fact that new signings are a bit thin on the ground. The new season is around the corner, the guys in Escape to victory had more time to gel. Les seems to be quite efficient at closing sales, but not so with purchases.
DISGRACEFUL!!!redandy10

It's not just that we are having our team ripped apart, it's the fact that new signings are a bit thin on the ground. The new season is around the corner, the guys in Escape to victory had more time to gel. Les seems to be quite efficient at closing sales, but not so with purchases.

DISGRACEFUL!!!

Score: 5

OSPREYSAINT
10:37am Tue 29 Jul 14

truelysaints wrote…

Its as plain as plain can be. The club is being lined up for a sale with all the family jewels having been sold off. Cortese saw this. and left perhaps ready for a buy back.

Top conspiracy theorising, we are getting experts at that, still don't know anything that is a hard fact.

[quote][p][bold]truelysaints[/bold] wrote:
Its as plain as plain can be. The club is being lined up for a sale with all the family jewels having been sold off. Cortese saw this. and left perhaps ready for a buy back.[/p][/quote]Top conspiracy theorising, we are getting experts at that, still don't know anything that is a hard fact.OSPREYSAINT

truelysaints wrote…

Its as plain as plain can be. The club is being lined up for a sale with all the family jewels having been sold off. Cortese saw this. and left perhaps ready for a buy back.

Top conspiracy theorising, we are getting experts at that, still don't know anything that is a hard fact.

That side should be plenty good enough to beat Thievinskiverpool. We definitely need to strengthen before the Baggies game though.

[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
Boruc. Clyne , Yoshida, Fonte, Targett, Wanyama, Cork, JWP, Davis, Tadic, Pelle. isn't a bad starting XI if they all turned up and played 100%.[/p][/quote]That side should be plenty good enough to beat Thievinskiverpool. We definitely need to strengthen before the Baggies game though.Clever Dick

That side should be plenty good enough to beat Thievinskiverpool. We definitely need to strengthen before the Baggies game though.

Score: 3

SOLENTDRIFTER
11:24am Tue 29 Jul 14

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

5 stars for this tweet.... No, make that ten....

[quote][p][bold]Little Hitler[/bold] wrote:
Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).
The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.
What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.
My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).
In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.
With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.
So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!
So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.
I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.
The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.
Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.
I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.
I still have faith, just.[/p][/quote]5 stars for this tweet.... No, make that ten....SOLENTDRIFTER

Little Hitler wrote…

Having kept fairly quiet on here over the last few months, I thought I’d air my thoughts on the current plight of our club now that we’ve pretty much hit rock bottom (well, at least I hope so).

The key thing to bear in mind is that we’re not really in a position to judge any individual (or group of individuals) within the club right now, the time for that will be the end of this coming season when the effectiveness of the their decision making process can be accurately measured. We finished 8th last season and the board have stated that they want to match or better that achievement. That is what I shall hold them to account for.

What we can do now, however, is start to dissect the chain of events that have led us to where we are now and to do this I think we need to go back to the start of last season. We were preparing for our 2nd term in the Premier League and made some notable high profile signings (Lovren, Wanayama, Osvaldo) with an ambitious young manager at the helm. This followed heavy investment the year before (Rodriguez, Ramirez, Clyne, Yoshida etc.) and the message coming out of the camp then was that we were a club aiming as high as the Champions League. The expectations of our squad, manager and the fans were set accordingly.

My concern from this time was that one individual appeared to be running the club on their own, making all the key decisions without seeking a majority vote from a board of directors. They were also spelling out a highly ambitious vision which was, probably, never going to be achievable. In fact, Nicola Cortese said as much in a recent interview where he stated that it was better to aim very high and fall short than to aim low and risk something worse (e.g. relegation).

In short, the club did not have a conventional governance system and any business that operates like this faces the threat of capitulation if a key figure is lost. When Cortese left the club in January I was disappointed (you had to admire what he had achieved) but not at all surprised as the owner clearly recognised this as poor business practice.

With the head man gone this unorthodox approach meant that we were liable to collapse like a house of cards. Cortese WAS the club to many people and when he left the manager and staff appeared to instantly lose their allegiance to Southampton as their faith was with him and him only.

So was the removal of Cortese the right decision? Probably, but then this is football not normal business and Cortese’s outside-the-box approach was both exciting and delivered short-term success. I’d liked to have see what he could have done in another 5 years but we’ll never know the answer to that now (again, maybe a good thing as he could have ruined us financially). The thing that bugs me though is that Cortese was the wish of Markus Liebherr and I find it sad that his very daughter wasn’t prepared to let him get on with the job. His performance almost demanded it!

So where are we left now? The conventional new board made it very clear only 2 months ago that they were in full control and that any player sales would be on their terms. I for one actually think this is still the case and can’t really fault the amounts collected for any of our departed players. I have very little positives to say about most the departed players or manager but would add that Lambert leaving was a disaster for us as he was such an important and popular figure within the club (the soul if you like and embodiment of our rise from almost nothing). This no doubt poured fuel on the fire that was our player exodus.

I’ve seen many fans claiming that the owner is asset stripping but I don’t currently believe that (I've had my fears though). It is my opinion that the club KNOW that they have the finest academy in the country (if not the world) and that we have a wealth of talent coming through all the time. They clearly BELIEVE that we can sell our best players for high sums and replace them either with a new player from the academy (e.g. Targett for Shaw) or find like-for-like replacements from the continent at a fraction of the cost (e.g. Tadic for Lallana). I think Koeman is ideal in this sense due to his football upbringing and in-depth knowledge of the European game.

The most important point (one which hardly anyone has mentioned) is that we must surely now be THE DESTINATION OF CHOICE for any talented youngster in the country. Not only do we have the best facilities, we give youth a chance in the Premier League and, in turn, provide them with a route to a top 4 club within a year of making their debut. You may just find that this is now our core strategy and that we may end up with even more talented youngsters than we currently do now. I can live with players leaving (despite how much I loathe the lack of loyalty) if it means that we can just turn the conveyor belt and even greater talent replaces it. What we do with the money is the big question and I sincerely hope it gets invested back into the club’s infrastructure so we can grow revenue, increase our fan base and actually become a big club in our own right.

Finally, we definitely need to sign a few experienced players and I’m quite sure that will happen in the next few weeks. I cannot possible see Koeman leaving as he must surely have been told the deal when he joined us.

I sincerely hope I’m right with the above but agree that there is currently some doubt and that it wouldn’t hurt for the club to engage with us and be entirely honest about what’s going on and how the money collected will be reinvested. What has happened this summer is surely unprecedented and I question whether any club has ever lost so many players in a summer break. Perhaps this is the true legacy left by Cortese’s approach to running the club and the reason why the owner intervenient the way she did.

I still have faith, just.

5 stars for this tweet.... No, make that ten....

Score: 1

ItchenBridger
10:48am Tue 29 Jul 14

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Gadzooks Carruthers, it would appear that the natives are revolting.

Fair thee well my Osprey friend. It is reported that the Cavalry have been sited west of Winchester so all will be well come the arrival of August.
Stand the sentry at ease. Water the horse.

[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
Gadzooks Carruthers, it would appear that the natives are revolting.[/p][/quote]Fair thee well my Osprey friend. It is reported that the Cavalry have been sited west of Winchester so all will be well come the arrival of August.
Stand the sentry at ease. Water the horse.ItchenBridger

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Gadzooks Carruthers, it would appear that the natives are revolting.

Fair thee well my Osprey friend. It is reported that the Cavalry have been sited west of Winchester so all will be well come the arrival of August.
Stand the sentry at ease. Water the horse.

This is where you should take your protests, if you can afford it. If you can get there e.t.c.

http://www.saintsfc.
co.uk/news/article/2
9082014-liverpool-vs
-southampton-tickets
-1789045.aspx
This is where you should take your protests, if you can afford it. If you can get there e.t.c.OSPREYSAINT

So who else has to leave before Gaston gets to start? I think the situation is ready made for him.

[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
Boruc. Clyne , Yoshida, Fonte, Targett, Wanyama, Cork, JWP, Davis, Tadic, Pelle. isn't a bad starting XI if they all turned up and played 100%.[/p][/quote]So who else has to leave before Gaston gets to start? I think the situation is ready made for him.GX Saint

So who else has to leave before Gaston gets to start? I think the situation is ready made for him.

Score: 2

Skating on thin ice
10:55am Tue 29 Jul 14

damoose wrote…

A few months after buying Southampton he bailed out a struggling printing company in Bern, saving 50 jobs and those of 72 apprentices and becoming known as the "Wifag saviour".

After his death at the age of 62 in August 2010 and the subsequent inheritance of Mali Holdings by Katharina, she decided to make 31 employees redundant and has since been accused of failing to set a new direction for the company.

The Swiss newspaper Der Bund said that while Mali initially said that Katharina would continue her father's work, "it has become increasingly clear in recent months that Mali can't sort out the successorship".

One employee at Wifag was quoted saying: "With the death of the patron, the chicken has lost its head. For a while it continued wandering around without a sense of direction, then it bled to death."

Sounds Familiar

The original article is at
http://www.derbund.c
h/wirtschaft/unterne
hmen-und-konjunktur/
Mali-verteilt-Kuendi
gungen-und-schweigt/
story/25158017

Don't say I didn't warn you. The biggest clue was the capital restructuring of the club last summer, that enables the owner to pay herself dividends out of trading profits. The Board, of course, will all agree to this.

[quote][p][bold]damoose[/bold] wrote:
A few months after buying Southampton he bailed out a struggling printing company in Bern, saving 50 jobs and those of 72 apprentices and becoming known as the "Wifag saviour".
After his death at the age of 62 in August 2010 and the subsequent inheritance of Mali Holdings by Katharina, she decided to make 31 employees redundant and has since been accused of failing to set a new direction for the company.
The Swiss newspaper Der Bund said that while Mali initially said that Katharina would continue her father's work, "it has become increasingly clear in recent months that Mali can't sort out the successorship".
One employee at Wifag was quoted saying: "With the death of the patron, the chicken has lost its head. For a while it continued wandering around without a sense of direction, then it bled to death."
Sounds Familiar[/p][/quote]The original article is at
http://www.derbund.c
h/wirtschaft/unterne
hmen-und-konjunktur/
Mali-verteilt-Kuendi
gungen-und-schweigt/
story/25158017
See also
http://www.bernerzei
tung.ch/region/bern/
Jetzt-sind-die-Wifag
Stellen-endgueltig-v
erloren/story/105135
18
Just LOVE the photo....
Don't say I didn't warn you. The biggest clue was the capital restructuring of the club last summer, that enables the owner to pay herself dividends out of trading profits. The Board, of course, will all agree to this.Skating on thin ice

damoose wrote…

A few months after buying Southampton he bailed out a struggling printing company in Bern, saving 50 jobs and those of 72 apprentices and becoming known as the "Wifag saviour".

After his death at the age of 62 in August 2010 and the subsequent inheritance of Mali Holdings by Katharina, she decided to make 31 employees redundant and has since been accused of failing to set a new direction for the company.

The Swiss newspaper Der Bund said that while Mali initially said that Katharina would continue her father's work, "it has become increasingly clear in recent months that Mali can't sort out the successorship".

One employee at Wifag was quoted saying: "With the death of the patron, the chicken has lost its head. For a while it continued wandering around without a sense of direction, then it bled to death."

Sounds Familiar

The original article is at
http://www.derbund.c
h/wirtschaft/unterne
hmen-und-konjunktur/
Mali-verteilt-Kuendi
gungen-und-schweigt/
story/25158017

Don't say I didn't warn you. The biggest clue was the capital restructuring of the club last summer, that enables the owner to pay herself dividends out of trading profits. The Board, of course, will all agree to this.

Score: 2

OSPREYSAINT
11:10am Tue 29 Jul 14

Confucious wrote…

miltonarcher wrote…

Confucious wrote…

miltonarcher wrote…

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.

We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.

Its not the empty stadium, for a meaningless match, that will discourage prospective new signings, its the lack of vision and commitment by the Board to take the club to the next level.

A protest would at least show the fans care passionately about what is happening, and that might just encourage players to sign for SFC .

Having invested 30 million in the new training facilities at Staplewood your suggestion that we could burn it down is perhaps a little extreme, are you a frustrated pyromaniac, or just frustrated?

I was very frustrated when my "Gay Whales Against The Bomb" protest flopped. Fukcing whales.....after all I'd done for them too.

Stop Blubbering at least they weren't Blue Whales.

[quote][p][bold]Confucious[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]miltonarcher[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Confucious[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]miltonarcher[/bold] wrote:
Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.
Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.[/p][/quote]Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.
We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.[/p][/quote]Its not the empty stadium, for a meaningless match, that will discourage prospective new signings, its the lack of vision and commitment by the Board to take the club to the next level.
A protest would at least show the fans care passionately about what is happening, and that might just encourage players to sign for SFC .
Having invested 30 million in the new training facilities at Staplewood your suggestion that we could burn it down is perhaps a little extreme, are you a frustrated pyromaniac, or just frustrated?[/p][/quote]I was very frustrated when my "Gay Whales Against The Bomb" protest flopped. Fukcing whales.....after all I'd done for them too.[/p][/quote]Stop Blubbering at least they weren't Blue Whales.OSPREYSAINT

Confucious wrote…

miltonarcher wrote…

Confucious wrote…

miltonarcher wrote…

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.

We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.

Its not the empty stadium, for a meaningless match, that will discourage prospective new signings, its the lack of vision and commitment by the Board to take the club to the next level.

A protest would at least show the fans care passionately about what is happening, and that might just encourage players to sign for SFC .

Having invested 30 million in the new training facilities at Staplewood your suggestion that we could burn it down is perhaps a little extreme, are you a frustrated pyromaniac, or just frustrated?

I was very frustrated when my "Gay Whales Against The Bomb" protest flopped. Fukcing whales.....after all I'd done for them too.

Stop Blubbering at least they weren't Blue Whales.

Score: 3

Harry Bong
10:57am Tue 29 Jul 14

As Milton Archer has said earlier "There is light at the end of the tunnel." Unnfortunately the tunnel has been sold and the light is from Anfield

As Milton Archer has said earlier "There is light at the end of the tunnel." Unnfortunately the tunnel has been sold and the light is from AnfieldHarry Bong

As Milton Archer has said earlier "There is light at the end of the tunnel." Unnfortunately the tunnel has been sold and the light is from Anfield

Absolutely. And with Isgrove,Reed, Gallagher, Stephens,Kelvin, Turbull,McQueen, Rowe, Mayuka ...even Sharpe to fill the bench, it could be worse... And we'll surely bring in a minimum of 3 players in the next fortnight... I'm quietly confident these boys will do well.. More concerned about the long term effect of us selling these kids after 1-2 good seasons., but won't know if this year is a one off or not until that time comes..

[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
Boruc. Clyne , Yoshida, Fonte, Targett, Wanyama, Cork, JWP, Davis, Tadic, Pelle. isn't a bad starting XI if they all turned up and played 100%.[/p][/quote]Absolutely. And with Isgrove,Reed, Gallagher, Stephens,Kelvin, Turbull,McQueen, Rowe, Mayuka ...even Sharpe to fill the bench, it could be worse... And we'll surely bring in a minimum of 3 players in the next fortnight... I'm quietly confident these boys will do well.. More concerned about the long term effect of us selling these kids after 1-2 good seasons., but won't know if this year is a one off or not until that time comes..BracknellSaint

Absolutely. And with Isgrove,Reed, Gallagher, Stephens,Kelvin, Turbull,McQueen, Rowe, Mayuka ...even Sharpe to fill the bench, it could be worse... And we'll surely bring in a minimum of 3 players in the next fortnight... I'm quietly confident these boys will do well.. More concerned about the long term effect of us selling these kids after 1-2 good seasons., but won't know if this year is a one off or not until that time comes..

Score: 2

Crossley Place Saint
11:01am Tue 29 Jul 14

miltonarcher wrote…

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Sounds a great idea, but actually a low crowd would have no effect whatever. People generally aren't willing to pay even more money to see these friendly games. We only got 4000 at the Udinese friendly at the start of 12/13, when we were just back in the Premier League and excitement was at its highest.

[quote][p][bold]miltonarcher[/bold] wrote:
Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.
Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.[/p][/quote]Sounds a great idea, but actually a low crowd would have no effect whatever. People generally aren't willing to pay even more money to see these friendly games. We only got 4000 at the Udinese friendly at the start of 12/13, when we were just back in the Premier League and excitement was at its highest.Crossley Place Saint

miltonarcher wrote…

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Sounds a great idea, but actually a low crowd would have no effect whatever. People generally aren't willing to pay even more money to see these friendly games. We only got 4000 at the Udinese friendly at the start of 12/13, when we were just back in the Premier League and excitement was at its highest.

Score: 2

Confucious
11:02am Tue 29 Jul 14

miltonarcher wrote…

Confucious wrote…

miltonarcher wrote…

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.

We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.

Its not the empty stadium, for a meaningless match, that will discourage prospective new signings, its the lack of vision and commitment by the Board to take the club to the next level.

A protest would at least show the fans care passionately about what is happening, and that might just encourage players to sign for SFC .

Having invested 30 million in the new training facilities at Staplewood your suggestion that we could burn it down is perhaps a little extreme, are you a frustrated pyromaniac, or just frustrated?

I was very frustrated when my "Gay Whales Against The Bomb" protest flopped. Fukcing whales.....after all I'd done for them too.

[quote][p][bold]miltonarcher[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Confucious[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]miltonarcher[/bold] wrote:
Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.
Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.[/p][/quote]Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.
We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.[/p][/quote]Its not the empty stadium, for a meaningless match, that will discourage prospective new signings, its the lack of vision and commitment by the Board to take the club to the next level.
A protest would at least show the fans care passionately about what is happening, and that might just encourage players to sign for SFC .
Having invested 30 million in the new training facilities at Staplewood your suggestion that we could burn it down is perhaps a little extreme, are you a frustrated pyromaniac, or just frustrated?[/p][/quote]I was very frustrated when my "Gay Whales Against The Bomb" protest flopped. Fukcing whales.....after all I'd done for them too.Confucious

miltonarcher wrote…

Confucious wrote…

miltonarcher wrote…

Boycott the Bayer 04 Leverkusen match! An empty stadium would say more than chanting outside SMS. It would also be reported in the media. Let’s show the Board what the fans think about the dismantling of the team.

Don’t talk to me about the 100 million war chest. So far the club have made derisory offers for players, for example, Marshal and Foster, why? If they were serious about rebuilding we would now have a new keeper in place.

Spot on. The board will get the message when the whole world and any prospective new signings avoid "the club with no fans" like the plague.

We could also then burn down Staplewood. When the numpty directors see that us fans are so angry that we've destroyed the academy base, they'll soon be off.

Its not the empty stadium, for a meaningless match, that will discourage prospective new signings, its the lack of vision and commitment by the Board to take the club to the next level.

A protest would at least show the fans care passionately about what is happening, and that might just encourage players to sign for SFC .

Having invested 30 million in the new training facilities at Staplewood your suggestion that we could burn it down is perhaps a little extreme, are you a frustrated pyromaniac, or just frustrated?

I was very frustrated when my "Gay Whales Against The Bomb" protest flopped. Fukcing whales.....after all I'd done for them too.

THE EUROPEAN DREAM IS WELL AND TRULY OVER - at least for now and the FIGHT from League one has been TORPEDOED by accidental Owner and Billionairess Katherina and Ex Ice Hockey - now Chairman Ralph Krueger.

GET ON THE TELEPHONE TO DE SPORTS SECTION - TICKET OFFICE - AND SKY TV PORTS SECTION and make your feelings known and Voices heard THIS MORNING.

PROTEST : 1 Hour before Bayer Leverkusen Game and at Brighton Away - be vocal and show that as Fans WE CARE ABOUT THE PLIGHT OF THIS CLUB.

COYR+WS

I've done an open letter to the club and await a response:

Dear Fat, Ralph and Les

I think you're all kunts.

Regards

Seed

[quote][p][bold]The Rise of The Foot Soldier.[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Seedhouse the Unrepentant[/bold] wrote:
Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?[/p][/quote]THE EUROPEAN DREAM IS WELL AND TRULY OVER - at least for now and the FIGHT from League one has been TORPEDOED by accidental Owner and Billionairess Katherina and Ex Ice Hockey - now Chairman Ralph Krueger.
GET ON THE TELEPHONE TO DE SPORTS SECTION - TICKET OFFICE - AND SKY TV PORTS SECTION and make your feelings known and Voices heard THIS MORNING.
PROTEST : 1 Hour before Bayer Leverkusen Game and at Brighton Away - be vocal and show that as Fans WE CARE ABOUT THE PLIGHT OF THIS CLUB.
COYR+WS[/p][/quote]I've done an open letter to the club and await a response:
Dear Fat, Ralph and Les
I think you're all kunts.
Regards
SeedSeedhouse the Unrepentant

The Rise of The Foot Soldier. wrote…

Seedhouse the Unrepentant wrote…

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?

THE EUROPEAN DREAM IS WELL AND TRULY OVER - at least for now and the FIGHT from League one has been TORPEDOED by accidental Owner and Billionairess Katherina and Ex Ice Hockey - now Chairman Ralph Krueger.

GET ON THE TELEPHONE TO DE SPORTS SECTION - TICKET OFFICE - AND SKY TV PORTS SECTION and make your feelings known and Voices heard THIS MORNING.

PROTEST : 1 Hour before Bayer Leverkusen Game and at Brighton Away - be vocal and show that as Fans WE CARE ABOUT THE PLIGHT OF THIS CLUB.

Clyne will leave....... Gaston will to...... so we need another full back and two creative midfielders imo.... not sure why we are worried about goal keeping position Boruc ain't no Banks but he will do until the ship is shored up....

[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]GX Saint[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
Boruc. Clyne , Yoshida, Fonte, Targett, Wanyama, Cork, JWP, Davis, Tadic, Pelle. isn't a bad starting XI if they all turned up and played 100%.[/p][/quote]So who else has to leave before Gaston gets to start? I think the situation is ready made for him.[/p][/quote]Good point, Gallagher, Rambo, The Wotsit, Isgrove, Mayuka impact subs as required.[/p][/quote]Clyne will leave....... Gaston will to...... so we need another full back and two creative midfielders imo.... not sure why we are worried about goal keeping position Boruc ain't no Banks but he will do until the ship is shored up....steekeemcglue

Clyne will leave....... Gaston will to...... so we need another full back and two creative midfielders imo.... not sure why we are worried about goal keeping position Boruc ain't no Banks but he will do until the ship is shored up....

Score: -1

OSPREYSAINT
11:12am Tue 29 Jul 14

Seedhouse the Unrepentant wrote…

The Rise of The Foot Soldier. wrote…

Seedhouse the Unrepentant wrote…

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?

THE EUROPEAN DREAM IS WELL AND TRULY OVER - at least for now and the FIGHT from League one has been TORPEDOED by accidental Owner and Billionairess Katherina and Ex Ice Hockey - now Chairman Ralph Krueger.

GET ON THE TELEPHONE TO DE SPORTS SECTION - TICKET OFFICE - AND SKY TV PORTS SECTION and make your feelings known and Voices heard THIS MORNING.

PROTEST : 1 Hour before Bayer Leverkusen Game and at Brighton Away - be vocal and show that as Fans WE CARE ABOUT THE PLIGHT OF THIS CLUB.

COYR+WS

I've done an open letter to the club and await a response:

Dear Fat, Ralph and Les

I think you're all kunts.

Regards

Seed

They will only pick you up over your spelling.

[quote][p][bold]Seedhouse the Unrepentant[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]The Rise of The Foot Soldier.[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Seedhouse the Unrepentant[/bold] wrote:
Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?[/p][/quote]THE EUROPEAN DREAM IS WELL AND TRULY OVER - at least for now and the FIGHT from League one has been TORPEDOED by accidental Owner and Billionairess Katherina and Ex Ice Hockey - now Chairman Ralph Krueger.
GET ON THE TELEPHONE TO DE SPORTS SECTION - TICKET OFFICE - AND SKY TV PORTS SECTION and make your feelings known and Voices heard THIS MORNING.
PROTEST : 1 Hour before Bayer Leverkusen Game and at Brighton Away - be vocal and show that as Fans WE CARE ABOUT THE PLIGHT OF THIS CLUB.
COYR+WS[/p][/quote]I've done an open letter to the club and await a response:
Dear Fat, Ralph and Les
I think you're all kunts.
Regards
Seed[/p][/quote]They will only pick you up over your spelling.OSPREYSAINT

Seedhouse the Unrepentant wrote…

The Rise of The Foot Soldier. wrote…

Seedhouse the Unrepentant wrote…

Good morning on this bright new day. We sold anyone yet?

THE EUROPEAN DREAM IS WELL AND TRULY OVER - at least for now and the FIGHT from League one has been TORPEDOED by accidental Owner and Billionairess Katherina and Ex Ice Hockey - now Chairman Ralph Krueger.

GET ON THE TELEPHONE TO DE SPORTS SECTION - TICKET OFFICE - AND SKY TV PORTS SECTION and make your feelings known and Voices heard THIS MORNING.

PROTEST : 1 Hour before Bayer Leverkusen Game and at Brighton Away - be vocal and show that as Fans WE CARE ABOUT THE PLIGHT OF THIS CLUB.

COYR+WS

I've done an open letter to the club and await a response:

Dear Fat, Ralph and Les

I think you're all kunts.

Regards

Seed

They will only pick you up over your spelling.

Score: 1

saint christopher
11:15am Tue 29 Jul 14

At the moment we're all mushrooms, with no actual facts to go on in spite of all the newspaper articles now flying around purporting to be telling us the reasons behind the apparent melt-down.

The only thing that has now been categorically proved to every genuine football fan in the country is that there is now an FA/UEFA supported cartel at the top of the English game which it is virtually impossible for other clubs to compete with on level terms. The current Mirror article quoted sums up this situation.

There is now an obvious league within a league, and it only to be hoped that Saint's example might - just might - make people start to question the status quo and agitate for change (whatever that might be and however unlikely).

I believe our only realistic plan (short of being content to be a PL bit-player) is to continue to maximise our quite unique strengths. This surely means carrying on developing and where necessary selling at premium prices good English players, BUT then using these funds to

(a) ensure we have a team of Academy players supported by experienced good quality players from either here or abroad

(b) go towards developing a new or larger ground so that in 3,4,5 year's time we have the fan base to realistically challenge the foreign-owner supported elite.

Whilst gutted at what has happened, the presence of Koeman is the one bit of light at the end of this very dark tunnel as I cannot believe he came here with no idea of what was in store. Indeed it wouldn't surprise me if he wasn't lured by the type of vision I've just stated.

If that is just pie-in-the-sky wishful thinking on my part and he's in fact had the rug pulled from underneath him , then it would come as no surprise if we next heard of his resignation, which would surely lead to the deafening sound of muffled gun shots around the Southampton area as Saints fans finally give up and decide to end the pain and suffering once and for all.

At the end of the day I don't know, and in reality neither does anyone else. But by the end of August we'll certainly have a far better idea.

At the moment we're all mushrooms, with no actual facts to go on in spite of all the newspaper articles now flying around purporting to be telling us the reasons behind the apparent melt-down.
The only thing that has now been categorically proved to every genuine football fan in the country is that there is now an FA/UEFA supported cartel at the top of the English game which it is virtually impossible for other clubs to compete with on level terms. The current Mirror article quoted sums up this situation.
There is now an obvious league within a league, and it only to be hoped that Saint's example might - just might - make people start to question the status quo and agitate for change (whatever that might be and however unlikely).
I believe our only realistic plan (short of being content to be a PL bit-player) is to continue to maximise our quite unique strengths. This surely means carrying on developing and where necessary selling at premium prices good English players, BUT then using these funds to
(a) ensure we have a team of Academy players supported by experienced good quality players from either here or abroad
(b) go towards developing a new or larger ground so that in 3,4,5 year's time we have the fan base to realistically challenge the foreign-owner supported elite.
Whilst gutted at what has happened, the presence of Koeman is the one bit of light at the end of this very dark tunnel as I cannot believe he came here with no idea of what was in store. Indeed it wouldn't surprise me if he wasn't lured by the type of vision I've just stated.
If that is just pie-in-the-sky wishful thinking on my part and he's in fact had the rug pulled from underneath him , then it would come as no surprise if we next heard of his resignation, which would surely lead to the deafening sound of muffled gun shots around the Southampton area as Saints fans finally give up and decide to end the pain and suffering once and for all.
At the end of the day I don't know, and in reality neither does anyone else. But by the end of August we'll certainly have a far better idea.saint christopher

At the moment we're all mushrooms, with no actual facts to go on in spite of all the newspaper articles now flying around purporting to be telling us the reasons behind the apparent melt-down.

The only thing that has now been categorically proved to every genuine football fan in the country is that there is now an FA/UEFA supported cartel at the top of the English game which it is virtually impossible for other clubs to compete with on level terms. The current Mirror article quoted sums up this situation.

There is now an obvious league within a league, and it only to be hoped that Saint's example might - just might - make people start to question the status quo and agitate for change (whatever that might be and however unlikely).

I believe our only realistic plan (short of being content to be a PL bit-player) is to continue to maximise our quite unique strengths. This surely means carrying on developing and where necessary selling at premium prices good English players, BUT then using these funds to

(a) ensure we have a team of Academy players supported by experienced good quality players from either here or abroad

(b) go towards developing a new or larger ground so that in 3,4,5 year's time we have the fan base to realistically challenge the foreign-owner supported elite.

Whilst gutted at what has happened, the presence of Koeman is the one bit of light at the end of this very dark tunnel as I cannot believe he came here with no idea of what was in store. Indeed it wouldn't surprise me if he wasn't lured by the type of vision I've just stated.

If that is just pie-in-the-sky wishful thinking on my part and he's in fact had the rug pulled from underneath him , then it would come as no surprise if we next heard of his resignation, which would surely lead to the deafening sound of muffled gun shots around the Southampton area as Saints fans finally give up and decide to end the pain and suffering once and for all.

At the end of the day I don't know, and in reality neither does anyone else. But by the end of August we'll certainly have a far better idea.

Score: 3

SNUGGLES 78
11:50am Tue 29 Jul 14

Saints n Winners wrote…

steekeemcglue wrote…

50 Years A Supporter wrote…

I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it!

you are having a laugh as are all those saying we are in a "relegation" scrap... you obviously know naff all about football. Take a look at the other clubs , take a look at their teams/squads..... £100M will steady the ship and allow us to build stability and a team on Ron's terms and lets look at his track record so far .... he has identified two quality players ..... and secured their services. These are not players who would have signed for a team threatened with relegation, they are players who would have signed up for a team building phase and there will be more.

The players were bought when we still had a very good team. Did Pele and Tadic realise that 5 or 7 players would be old in total.

Is it now possible to attract quality foreign players here on lower wages with our current team?

Win nowt with kids ,nowt i tell ye.

[quote][p][bold]Saints n Winners[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]steekeemcglue[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]50 Years A Supporter[/bold] wrote:
I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it![/p][/quote]you are having a laugh as are all those saying we are in a "relegation" scrap... you obviously know naff all about football. Take a look at the other clubs , take a look at their teams/squads..... £100M will steady the ship and allow us to build stability and a team on Ron's terms and lets look at his track record so far .... he has identified two quality players ..... and secured their services. These are not players who would have signed for a team threatened with relegation, they are players who would have signed up for a team building phase and there will be more.[/p][/quote]The players were bought when we still had a very good team. Did Pele and Tadic realise that 5 or 7 players would be old in total.
Is it now possible to attract quality foreign players here on lower wages with our current team?[/p][/quote]Win nowt with kids ,nowt i tell ye.SNUGGLES 78

Saints n Winners wrote…

steekeemcglue wrote…

50 Years A Supporter wrote…

I have to agree with most of the comments on here. I am disgusted by the policy of selling all the best players! Unless we start signing players NOW we are definitely in line for a relegation scrap. God knows why Koeman agreed to come here! You cannot sell 5-7 top players and replace them straightaway to gel in a new line-up. All Cortese's good work has been ruined and I hope the club is sold to someone who cares about it!

you are having a laugh as are all those saying we are in a "relegation" scrap... you obviously know naff all about football. Take a look at the other clubs , take a look at their teams/squads..... £100M will steady the ship and allow us to build stability and a team on Ron's terms and lets look at his track record so far .... he has identified two quality players ..... and secured their services. These are not players who would have signed for a team threatened with relegation, they are players who would have signed up for a team building phase and there will be more.

The players were bought when we still had a very good team. Did Pele and Tadic realise that 5 or 7 players would be old in total.

Is it now possible to attract quality foreign players here on lower wages with our current team?

Times are stating Clyne, Fonte and Cork want out now too. I'm being suicidal

[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]GX Saint[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
Boruc. Clyne , Yoshida, Fonte, Targett, Wanyama, Cork, JWP, Davis, Tadic, Pelle. isn't a bad starting XI if they all turned up and played 100%.[/p][/quote]So who else has to leave before Gaston gets to start? I think the situation is ready made for him.[/p][/quote]Good point, Gallagher, Rambo, The Wotsit, Isgrove, Mayuka impact subs as required.[/p][/quote]Times are stating Clyne, Fonte and Cork want out now too. I'm being suicidalTGodSFC

Times are stating Clyne, Fonte and Cork want out now too. I'm being suicidal

You will cheer me up soon when you tell me Osvaldo has decided to stay after all.

[quote][p][bold]TGodSFC[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]GX Saint[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
Boruc. Clyne , Yoshida, Fonte, Targett, Wanyama, Cork, JWP, Davis, Tadic, Pelle. isn't a bad starting XI if they all turned up and played 100%.[/p][/quote]So who else has to leave before Gaston gets to start? I think the situation is ready made for him.[/p][/quote]Good point, Gallagher, Rambo, The Wotsit, Isgrove, Mayuka impact subs as required.[/p][/quote]Times are stating Clyne, Fonte and Cork want out now too. I'm being suicidal[/p][/quote]You will cheer me up soon when you tell me Osvaldo has decided to stay after all.OSPREYSAINT

Times are stating Clyne, Fonte and Cork want out now too. I'm being suicidal

You will cheer me up soon when you tell me Osvaldo has decided to stay after all.

Score: 0

Rising_Son
11:25am Tue 29 Jul 14

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Dartom wrote…

I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.

I am just a fungi.

That should be a fungus. Fungi is plural. Thought you'd like to know.

[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Dartom[/bold] wrote:
I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.[/p][/quote]I am just a fungi.[/p][/quote]That should be a fungus. Fungi is plural. Thought you'd like to know.Rising_Son

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Dartom wrote…

I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.

I am just a fungi.

That should be a fungus. Fungi is plural. Thought you'd like to know.

Score: 2

Saint.
4:48pm Tue 29 Jul 14

Confucious wrote…

Saint. wrote…

Confucious wrote…

Saint. wrote…

bbb001 wrote…

Saint. wrote…

Enough now!

I have never hidden the fact that I believed we had the best chairman in NC, and we did! NC promised and delivered on those promises. He gave the club ambition to succeed and clearly believed there is no point being in this game if you do not aspire to be the best and to do this challenge the best on equal footing. He took the club from league one to eight in the prem, without really silly wages being paid!

Now we are here on the fresh hold of a hopefully propus new area to now see what?

Personally alarm bells rang when I read a quote from KL saying" she did not want NC to leave." But she obviously did not work too hard to keep him, and give him what he wanted to take this club forward, to succeed with the vision. That is all she really had to do to keep a man at the helm who was clearly delivering by a country mile! Yes we can all argue about what he actually wanted, doing, and way of doing, but not a single person on here knows! Only the board does and may be only NC and KL. But still so many opinions are formed from speculation and hear say!

We now have Les Reed who has never filled me with confidence anyway, simply lying to our faces! He has made big statements on the back of really not knowing the score, or being farmed out to appease the fans, as Ralph bombed. Quite simply a five year old would done better, as all he has done has said words the fans wanted to hear, even if they had no substance to them!

We now have Ralph Krueger who is suppose to be the big motivational speaker/communicator

! He comes out and says going forward they would find a way to communicate to the fan on a more frequent basis! If this current situation does warrant it, then I don't know what does! Yet we have not seen or herd a peep from him. RK also states that our players are for Southampton FC! He continues to say I've played hockey and got a scar on my chin, I can be tough when these club come knocking! See what you mean Ralph, real tough cookie!

Between these two they have taken Southampton FC and archived the following in a space of a short time.

They have lost the club kit supplier (don't believe all what they said, as it not that they would never lie to you)

They have taken a club sitting eight in the league with potential to archive more with additions (clearly now a concept wasted on them), and with many plaudits around the world and brought it down to date the laughing stock in football! We are the butt of many jokes, and oh how others are loving trying to put us in our so called place!

They say things like no need to sale and with in weeks of the World cup sale all three of OUR England players! Something to proud of!!

They go onto sell virtually the rest of the squad, with no signs given to the fans of an end for the rest of the squad. They single handily ripped the total team spirit out of the club by their actions! They are setting unprecedented player sales in numbers never seen before!! Yet they hide behind the fact of the sizeable undisclosed deal done for each!

The new phrase is for calm as our players continue to be sold, and they have the cheek to say well yes we want to keep our best players and look at Reed who signed a contract proves the point!! What Les has this proved? What does a contract mean, apart from a big sale fee?! The players YOU BOTH have sold all have long contracts, and playing for a club that players use to want to play for! Now LR and RK have created a open door for the players to talk to each other then pop their head in and say boss I want to leave, and you say no problem boy as we only need to hear "we don't want to be here" and we sell, as you know sunny we don't want long faces around here.

They have single handily changed the way the other clubs view us, and given them no need to look else where of further a field.

They continue show naivety dealing with players and agents! Instead they are being walked over oh so easily!!!

I can only hope Ronald Koeman knows what is round the corner, as he has been embarrassed now by having to say, ok three gone and now it has to stop here. For him to see further two go under his nose! We are indeed lucky to have RK and his tweet picture yesterday was priceless! How these two got him is a miracle, and gets me to thinking may be Koeman knows something we don't.

A message to the board, you have now gone too far, and need to start thinking of the bigger damage you are inflicting to the fans and the club! You are humiliating this great club of ours and creating us as simply the laughing stock of footballing world! You must start today before its too late to put the pride back in Southampton FC and for the fans and tell us your intentions, game plan, ambitions, with a statement and actions that speak louder than words! As a Saint fan we are hurting and need to know why, and what you intend to do?

Its no secret why Cortese left, he refused to be accountable to KL, the woman who owns the club. He thought Sfc was his and didnot want to answer to KL. Soon it will become clear that her intervention has saved the club not ruined it as you seem to think. Why dont you read the articles concerning the Saints debts during the Cortese tenure.

Firstly I stated that no one really knows why! Not even you!!

Second if you wish to believe rumours, then the rumour is that NC did not want KL in the Southampton FC boardroom! He flew out to answer to her and always had a lot of respect for her and her father. NC knew KL owned the club now, but just felt she did not need to be involved in the boardroom of the club. That just simply business

Thirdly as for debts! What do you actually know? NC is one the highest bankers in the world, he knows how to mange debt! This he does without thinking! Its his profession!

Fourthly if KL has come in to save the day as you claim we will all find out soon, and that means NC had to go, why did KL state she wanted to keep him, and if there is any truth to this statement, then NC could not of been that bad as you paint, can he?

Lastly as a Saints fans I have read all the comments you suggest I should do! Though not once have I mentioned or knocked KL, so I find your comments strange! I have knocked the two people she has in charge! You should not believe all you read sir! As we are told, our players are not for sale. Our players are for Southampton FC! The best is "nothing change"

Let me ask you something. When have you ever seen three Saints players playing for England, for the next moment they are all sold?! When have you ever seen three top players sold to one club?! When have you seen five of your best team players sold with a click of a finger?! Can you see this as the end of our player sale?! We are creating astounding history and being laughed at to boot?! Your happy with this?

Blimey - you must be really unhappy that your parents ever met.

Are you?

I don't know your parents.

Snap

[quote][p][bold]Confucious[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Saint.[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Confucious[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Saint.[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]bbb001[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Saint.[/bold] wrote:
Enough now!
I have never hidden the fact that I believed we had the best chairman in NC, and we did! NC promised and delivered on those promises. He gave the club ambition to succeed and clearly believed there is no point being in this game if you do not aspire to be the best and to do this challenge the best on equal footing. He took the club from league one to eight in the prem, without really silly wages being paid!
Now we are here on the fresh hold of a hopefully propus new area to now see what?
Personally alarm bells rang when I read a quote from KL saying" she did not want NC to leave." But she obviously did not work too hard to keep him, and give him what he wanted to take this club forward, to succeed with the vision. That is all she really had to do to keep a man at the helm who was clearly delivering by a country mile! Yes we can all argue about what he actually wanted, doing, and way of doing, but not a single person on here knows! Only the board does and may be only NC and KL. But still so many opinions are formed from speculation and hear say!
We now have Les Reed who has never filled me with confidence anyway, simply lying to our faces! He has made big statements on the back of really not knowing the score, or being farmed out to appease the fans, as Ralph bombed. Quite simply a five year old would done better, as all he has done has said words the fans wanted to hear, even if they had no substance to them!
We now have Ralph Krueger who is suppose to be the big motivational speaker/communicator
! He comes out and says going forward they would find a way to communicate to the fan on a more frequent basis! If this current situation does warrant it, then I don't know what does! Yet we have not seen or herd a peep from him. RK also states that our players are for Southampton FC! He continues to say I've played hockey and got a scar on my chin, I can be tough when these club come knocking! See what you mean Ralph, real tough cookie!
Between these two they have taken Southampton FC and archived the following in a space of a short time.
They have lost the club kit supplier (don't believe all what they said, as it not that they would never lie to you)
They have taken a club sitting eight in the league with potential to archive more with additions (clearly now a concept wasted on them), and with many plaudits around the world and brought it down to date the laughing stock in football! We are the butt of many jokes, and oh how others are loving trying to put us in our so called place!
They say things like no need to sale and with in weeks of the World cup sale all three of OUR England players! Something to proud of!!
They go onto sell virtually the rest of the squad, with no signs given to the fans of an end for the rest of the squad. They single handily ripped the total team spirit out of the club by their actions! They are setting unprecedented player sales in numbers never seen before!! Yet they hide behind the fact of the sizeable undisclosed deal done for each!
The new phrase is for calm as our players continue to be sold, and they have the cheek to say well yes we want to keep our best players and look at Reed who signed a contract proves the point!! What Les has this proved? What does a contract mean, apart from a big sale fee?! The players YOU BOTH have sold all have long contracts, and playing for a club that players use to want to play for! Now LR and RK have created a open door for the players to talk to each other then pop their head in and say boss I want to leave, and you say no problem boy as we only need to hear "we don't want to be here" and we sell, as you know sunny we don't want long faces around here.
They have single handily changed the way the other clubs view us, and given them no need to look else where of further a field.
They continue show naivety dealing with players and agents! Instead they are being walked over oh so easily!!!
I can only hope Ronald Koeman knows what is round the corner, as he has been embarrassed now by having to say, ok three gone and now it has to stop here. For him to see further two go under his nose! We are indeed lucky to have RK and his tweet picture yesterday was priceless! How these two got him is a miracle, and gets me to thinking may be Koeman knows something we don't.
A message to the board, you have now gone too far, and need to start thinking of the bigger damage you are inflicting to the fans and the club! You are humiliating this great club of ours and creating us as simply the laughing stock of footballing world! You must start today before its too late to put the pride back in Southampton FC and for the fans and tell us your intentions, game plan, ambitions, with a statement and actions that speak louder than words! As a Saint fan we are hurting and need to know why, and what you intend to do?[/p][/quote]Its no secret why Cortese left, he refused to be accountable to KL, the woman who owns the club. He thought Sfc was his and didnot want to answer to KL. Soon it will become clear that her intervention has saved the club not ruined it as you seem to think. Why dont you read the articles concerning the Saints debts during the Cortese tenure.[/p][/quote]Firstly I stated that no one really knows why! Not even you!!
Second if you wish to believe rumours, then the rumour is that NC did not want KL in the Southampton FC boardroom! He flew out to answer to her and always had a lot of respect for her and her father. NC knew KL owned the club now, but just felt she did not need to be involved in the boardroom of the club. That just simply business
Thirdly as for debts! What do you actually know? NC is one the highest bankers in the world, he knows how to mange debt! This he does without thinking! Its his profession!
Fourthly if KL has come in to save the day as you claim we will all find out soon, and that means NC had to go, why did KL state she wanted to keep him, and if there is any truth to this statement, then NC could not of been that bad as you paint, can he?
Lastly as a Saints fans I have read all the comments you suggest I should do! Though not once have I mentioned or knocked KL, so I find your comments strange! I have knocked the two people she has in charge! You should not believe all you read sir! As we are told, our players are not for sale. Our players are for Southampton FC! The best is "nothing change"
Let me ask you something. When have you ever seen three Saints players playing for England, for the next moment they are all sold?! When have you ever seen three top players sold to one club?! When have you seen five of your best team players sold with a click of a finger?! Can you see this as the end of our player sale?! We are creating astounding history and being laughed at to boot?! Your happy with this?[/p][/quote]Blimey - you must be really unhappy that your parents ever met.[/p][/quote]Are you?[/p][/quote]I don't know your parents.[/p][/quote]SnapSaint.

Confucious wrote…

Saint. wrote…

Confucious wrote…

Saint. wrote…

bbb001 wrote…

Saint. wrote…

Enough now!

I have never hidden the fact that I believed we had the best chairman in NC, and we did! NC promised and delivered on those promises. He gave the club ambition to succeed and clearly believed there is no point being in this game if you do not aspire to be the best and to do this challenge the best on equal footing. He took the club from league one to eight in the prem, without really silly wages being paid!

Now we are here on the fresh hold of a hopefully propus new area to now see what?

Personally alarm bells rang when I read a quote from KL saying" she did not want NC to leave." But she obviously did not work too hard to keep him, and give him what he wanted to take this club forward, to succeed with the vision. That is all she really had to do to keep a man at the helm who was clearly delivering by a country mile! Yes we can all argue about what he actually wanted, doing, and way of doing, but not a single person on here knows! Only the board does and may be only NC and KL. But still so many opinions are formed from speculation and hear say!

We now have Les Reed who has never filled me with confidence anyway, simply lying to our faces! He has made big statements on the back of really not knowing the score, or being farmed out to appease the fans, as Ralph bombed. Quite simply a five year old would done better, as all he has done has said words the fans wanted to hear, even if they had no substance to them!

We now have Ralph Krueger who is suppose to be the big motivational speaker/communicator

! He comes out and says going forward they would find a way to communicate to the fan on a more frequent basis! If this current situation does warrant it, then I don't know what does! Yet we have not seen or herd a peep from him. RK also states that our players are for Southampton FC! He continues to say I've played hockey and got a scar on my chin, I can be tough when these club come knocking! See what you mean Ralph, real tough cookie!

Between these two they have taken Southampton FC and archived the following in a space of a short time.

They have lost the club kit supplier (don't believe all what they said, as it not that they would never lie to you)

They have taken a club sitting eight in the league with potential to archive more with additions (clearly now a concept wasted on them), and with many plaudits around the world and brought it down to date the laughing stock in football! We are the butt of many jokes, and oh how others are loving trying to put us in our so called place!

They say things like no need to sale and with in weeks of the World cup sale all three of OUR England players! Something to proud of!!

They go onto sell virtually the rest of the squad, with no signs given to the fans of an end for the rest of the squad. They single handily ripped the total team spirit out of the club by their actions! They are setting unprecedented player sales in numbers never seen before!! Yet they hide behind the fact of the sizeable undisclosed deal done for each!

The new phrase is for calm as our players continue to be sold, and they have the cheek to say well yes we want to keep our best players and look at Reed who signed a contract proves the point!! What Les has this proved? What does a contract mean, apart from a big sale fee?! The players YOU BOTH have sold all have long contracts, and playing for a club that players use to want to play for! Now LR and RK have created a open door for the players to talk to each other then pop their head in and say boss I want to leave, and you say no problem boy as we only need to hear "we don't want to be here" and we sell, as you know sunny we don't want long faces around here.

They have single handily changed the way the other clubs view us, and given them no need to look else where of further a field.

They continue show naivety dealing with players and agents! Instead they are being walked over oh so easily!!!

I can only hope Ronald Koeman knows what is round the corner, as he has been embarrassed now by having to say, ok three gone and now it has to stop here. For him to see further two go under his nose! We are indeed lucky to have RK and his tweet picture yesterday was priceless! How these two got him is a miracle, and gets me to thinking may be Koeman knows something we don't.

A message to the board, you have now gone too far, and need to start thinking of the bigger damage you are inflicting to the fans and the club! You are humiliating this great club of ours and creating us as simply the laughing stock of footballing world! You must start today before its too late to put the pride back in Southampton FC and for the fans and tell us your intentions, game plan, ambitions, with a statement and actions that speak louder than words! As a Saint fan we are hurting and need to know why, and what you intend to do?

Its no secret why Cortese left, he refused to be accountable to KL, the woman who owns the club. He thought Sfc was his and didnot want to answer to KL. Soon it will become clear that her intervention has saved the club not ruined it as you seem to think. Why dont you read the articles concerning the Saints debts during the Cortese tenure.

Firstly I stated that no one really knows why! Not even you!!

Second if you wish to believe rumours, then the rumour is that NC did not want KL in the Southampton FC boardroom! He flew out to answer to her and always had a lot of respect for her and her father. NC knew KL owned the club now, but just felt she did not need to be involved in the boardroom of the club. That just simply business

Thirdly as for debts! What do you actually know? NC is one the highest bankers in the world, he knows how to mange debt! This he does without thinking! Its his profession!

Fourthly if KL has come in to save the day as you claim we will all find out soon, and that means NC had to go, why did KL state she wanted to keep him, and if there is any truth to this statement, then NC could not of been that bad as you paint, can he?

Lastly as a Saints fans I have read all the comments you suggest I should do! Though not once have I mentioned or knocked KL, so I find your comments strange! I have knocked the two people she has in charge! You should not believe all you read sir! As we are told, our players are not for sale. Our players are for Southampton FC! The best is "nothing change"

Let me ask you something. When have you ever seen three Saints players playing for England, for the next moment they are all sold?! When have you ever seen three top players sold to one club?! When have you seen five of your best team players sold with a click of a finger?! Can you see this as the end of our player sale?! We are creating astounding history and being laughed at to boot?! Your happy with this?

Blimey - you must be really unhappy that your parents ever met.

Are you?

I don't know your parents.

Snap

Score: 1

cebu blue
11:26am Tue 29 Jul 14

milton road wrote…

Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,

000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.

Shame you have not much to show for it all... only despair.

[quote][p][bold]milton road[/bold] wrote:
Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,
000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.[/p][/quote]Shame you have not much to show for it all... only despair.cebu blue

milton road wrote…

Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,

000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.

Shame you have not much to show for it all... only despair.

Score: 0

NY Saint
11:28am Tue 29 Jul 14

There's a lot of pro-cortese stuff around, but I'm not so sure. It's entirely conceivable that he saw that his five year plan had hit the inenvitable glass ceiling. Champions league for saints needs a 50 year plan involving a 55000 sweater stadium, a worldwide name, and being the team of the south drawing fans from everywhere. Im In nyc - the big 5 have fans everywhere here. we sure dont. for corteses plan to succeed thats the kindnof thing that would have to change. There's no way we could have kept everyone we've lost on those wages they now get without going bust. He very possibly saw that and got out before it went bad so he'd look good.

Now I just hope no one else goes although certainly not to spurs. I get the feeling we just have to clean house and start over, and all I can say is that at lease we have over a hundred million to do it with. The problems start if we only spend 25 ,million. People have to know the club is still for real - spending most of the income is the only way to do that. Go make an offer for Fellaini, or someone of that ilk. Too bad we missed de vrij. Tis is what is making the board look real bad, and they had better fix it.

There's a lot of pro-cortese stuff around, but I'm not so sure. It's entirely conceivable that he saw that his five year plan had hit the inenvitable glass ceiling. Champions league for saints needs a 50 year plan involving a 55000 sweater stadium, a worldwide name, and being the team of the south drawing fans from everywhere. Im In nyc - the big 5 have fans everywhere here. we sure dont. for corteses plan to succeed thats the kindnof thing that would have to change. There's no way we could have kept everyone we've lost on those wages they now get without going bust. He very possibly saw that and got out before it went bad so he'd look good.
Now I just hope no one else goes although certainly not to spurs. I get the feeling we just have to clean house and start over, and all I can say is that at lease we have over a hundred million to do it with. The problems start if we only spend 25 ,million. People have to know the club is still for real - spending most of the income is the only way to do that. Go make an offer for Fellaini, or someone of that ilk. Too bad we missed de vrij. Tis is what is making the board look real bad, and they had better fix it.NY Saint

There's a lot of pro-cortese stuff around, but I'm not so sure. It's entirely conceivable that he saw that his five year plan had hit the inenvitable glass ceiling. Champions league for saints needs a 50 year plan involving a 55000 sweater stadium, a worldwide name, and being the team of the south drawing fans from everywhere. Im In nyc - the big 5 have fans everywhere here. we sure dont. for corteses plan to succeed thats the kindnof thing that would have to change. There's no way we could have kept everyone we've lost on those wages they now get without going bust. He very possibly saw that and got out before it went bad so he'd look good.

Now I just hope no one else goes although certainly not to spurs. I get the feeling we just have to clean house and start over, and all I can say is that at lease we have over a hundred million to do it with. The problems start if we only spend 25 ,million. People have to know the club is still for real - spending most of the income is the only way to do that. Go make an offer for Fellaini, or someone of that ilk. Too bad we missed de vrij. Tis is what is making the board look real bad, and they had better fix it.

Score: 4

OSPREYSAINT
11:29am Tue 29 Jul 14

Rising_Son wrote…

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Dartom wrote…

I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.

I am just a fungi.

That should be a fungus. Fungi is plural. Thought you'd like to know.

That would ruin the joke though unless my name was Gus.

[quote][p][bold]Rising_Son[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]OSPREYSAINT[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Dartom[/bold] wrote:
I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.[/p][/quote]I am just a fungi.[/p][/quote]That should be a fungus. Fungi is plural. Thought you'd like to know.[/p][/quote]That would ruin the joke though unless my name was Gus.OSPREYSAINT

Rising_Son wrote…

OSPREYSAINT wrote…

Dartom wrote…

I have a new name for us Saints fans.....Mush-rooms, kept in the dark and fed on s**t.

I am just a fungi.

That should be a fungus. Fungi is plural. Thought you'd like to know.

That would ruin the joke though unless my name was Gus.

Score: 0

OSPREYSAINT
11:30am Tue 29 Jul 14

cebu blue wrote…

milton road wrote…

Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,

000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.

Shame you have not much to show for it all... only despair.

Despair can be temporary.

[quote][p][bold]cebu blue[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]milton road[/bold] wrote:
Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,
000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.[/p][/quote]Shame you have not much to show for it all... only despair.[/p][/quote]Despair can be temporary.OSPREYSAINT

cebu blue wrote…

milton road wrote…

Saints turn over last season was an estimated 114, 000,000. The transfer fees are approx, £90,000000. At this point in time we still have player assetts of around £90,000,000 not including J Rod and Morgan which would be around 45-50,000,000. We have academy facilities worth £30,000,0000 and a ground worth around £60,000,000 plus.
No way wiould the club be sold for 50,000,000, work the sums out. More like £150,000,000-£200,

000,000 even now.
Good post Little Hitler.
Think the truth is no one knows what is in the owner's or board's mind, I am not sure even they do which is worrying. its like watching a headless chicken run around without NC running it. But yes with one man running the show it was like a pack of dominoes waiting to fall.
The ineptitude of watching this unfold and not having players ready to come in and soften the blow is simply unbelievable by people who are meant to be professional people. They have ripped the soul out of the club, put a rift between club,players and fans and feel good factor is definitely gone. Even bringing in new players will not rebuild that feeling of oneness that we faced the football world together and we could achieve anything. A philosophy put in place by NC and NA. I used to love NA's beating the drum about one family and hey weren't our fans fantastic. he was the manager that summed up everything Saints were at that moment in time and he got sh** all over by the club.
After Lawrie Mac for me he was our best manager.
Times change and what ever happens even if by some miracle the club is better that feeling of family has gone and i doubt it will ever be recaptured.

Shame you have not much to show for it all... only despair.

Despair can be temporary.

Score: 4

oh when the saints
11:35am Tue 29 Jul 14

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I doubt it very much - Cortese is sold up and out of Southampton now.

[quote][p][bold]Ozmosis[/bold] wrote:
You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:
http://www.hat-trick
.fr/southampton-est-
en-vente/
As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.[/p][/quote]I doubt it very much - Cortese is sold up and out of Southampton now.oh when the saints

Ozmosis wrote…

You need to read this article Simon - puts the player sales in perspective:

http://www.hat-trick

.fr/southampton-est-

en-vente/

As suspected the club is for sale, and Katarina wants to gain as much money back from player sales, leaving the infrastructure in one piece. I would imagine that Koeman knows this is the score, and knew from the outset. He will have a new owner to supply funds and he can mould a team from scratch. I would also think that Koeman knows who the new buyer is, and I'd put money that Cortese is involved.

I doubt it very much - Cortese is sold up and out of Southampton now.

Score: 7

Churchill Saint
11:37am Tue 29 Jul 14

I have occasionally posted comments on this forum and have always been in the so-called Happy Clappy camp and have tried to take a very positive view of the situation based on the few facts we know. I never believed the fire-sale/asset stripping arguments and genuinely believed that the loss of MP, RL, AL, LS and DL was part of major restructuring job that KL had decided to implement in the wake of NC’s departure. HOWEVER, I simply could not understand the sale of Chambers to Arsenal and the likely sales of MS and JRod. So, I admit it and I apologise to those I described as neg heads. They were right and I was wrong.

I think Little Hitler makes some very good points in his post on this thread. However, I disagree. I am now convinced that KL is not only trying to sell the club but is also first selling off the best ‘assets’, pocketing the cash and then selling the club. All the evidence points to that. KL is a successful business woman. She has no interest in football. SFC is like any other of the Liebherr operations that she controls. When there is a good opportunity to sell to maximise return on investment (ROI), she will do it. There is no emotion in this decision, and certainly no intention to support the wishes of her late father. It’s business. Fact. And the opportunity to get extraordinarily high ROI happened this year when the new Sky TV deal, combined with the additional money for qualifying for Champions League, meant that the big 5 EPL clubs had a lot more money than usual to invest, and were willing to pay well over the odds. Combine that with the UEFA imposing limits of the number of foreigners in the squad for teams competing in Europe, it makes young, ENGLISH talent even more attractive. Everyone, including KL, knew that SFC is the one stop shop for young, English talent.
I believe that as soon as NC resigned, KL made the decision to sell and to maximise her ROI with no thought of the consequences to the club and fans. I think her plan was to draw up a list of current players who could be sold at over market prices and actively sell them off. Les Reed was instructed to do the job and is probably on a ‘bonus’ based on cash raised. I think her plan was to maximise revenue whilst still leaving just enough players from the squad, the Academy and new players in to ensure we remain in the premier league this season. The value of a premiership club being so much higher than one that was relegated. So effectively, she would get 2 bites of the cherry; she makes, say, around £100m net, after player sales and purchases and still sells a Premiership Club, with a world famous academy etc etc for another £100m+. £200m+ is not a bad return on investment. Good business for Liebherr Group. RoKo was brought in, in the full knowledge of the imminent sales of leading players, but still given a decent kitty (say £50m) to bring in his own players to build a team using the remainder of the squad and new youngsters from the Academy. It all fits. Chambers was on the list, Arsenal has shown a previous interest, so Les approached them and said he was available, at the right price of course. Even Wenger admitted it was a risk to spend so much on English potential. But someone like Harrison Reed was not on the list. So sign him up on a L/T contract, to tie him into the ‘new’ club. Of course Les is going to bluster about not wanting to let young talent go, but if they wanted to they could, on Southampton terms. But that is just a bluff to get the highest price and make it appear acceptable to fans. Maybe once or twice, Les, but we have stopped buying that story long ago.
Ralph was clearly brought in to sell the club (what remained). I guess that’s what he is trying to do now and would explain his disappearance act. My guess he has a lot of contacts with US sports franchises, who are prime candidates to buy a EPL team.

The trouble is, this cunning plan is not going to work, IMO. KL is treating our club just like a factory; if you invest enough in the machines (sorry, players), they will produce enough output to keep the side in the premiership. But this shows up her lack of football knowledge. To stay in the premiership you need a team that is fully committed, work as a team and have some pride in the club. But you don’t get these ingredients when the heart has been ripped out of the team but the people who own it and run it. However good RoKo is, he has a real challenge ahead of him this season and we may struggle to survive. I hope I am wrong.
I am not sure whether we have seen the last of NC – possibly not. It would not surprise me in the least if he has teamed up with a mega rich oligarch and bids to buy the club. I am not sure I would welcome that, in the same way that I don’t envy Man. City fans these days. Or maybe NC will join up with his old Argie mucker at Spurs, in some capacity.
I am very disappointed to the lack of investigative reporting from the DE. This is the biggest sporting story in Hampshire for the last 5 years and they have added nothing new. Compare with Ben Smith of the BBC who actually predicted what is happening now more than 6 months ago. I quote from his article of 16th Jan. 2014 entitled What does Cortese Exit mean for Southampton (still on the BBC/Southampton website, by the way). “And yet divisions off the field could not be avoided. Southampton fans will do their best to ignore the thought of the worst case scenario - chairman, manager, star players and ultimately an owner disappearing in a blur.” Shame that a BBC reporter could investigate and conclude that 7 months ago whilst DE reporters are none the wiser than the rest of us.
Frankly, I find this all very depressing. Saints have been hit by a perfect storm of a ruthless business woman wanting to maximise ROI at all costs, and a Football League that is epitomised by greed, TV money, agents, player disloyalty, disrespect of fans and favour for the mega-rich few. When a business sells off one of its operations, there is at least some protection for the employees by company law and trade Union support. However, when a business sells off a football club, there is absolutely no protection for the fans whose money and support used to be the life blood of the club. I can never stop supporting my beloved Saints, but I think I am going to spend more time on other, less tainted pastimes than football.

I have occasionally posted comments on this forum and have always been in the so-called Happy Clappy camp and have tried to take a very positive view of the situation based on the few facts we know. I never believed the fire-sale/asset stripping arguments and genuinely believed that the loss of MP, RL, AL, LS and DL was part of major restructuring job that KL had decided to implement in the wake of NC’s departure. HOWEVER, I simply could not understand the sale of Chambers to Arsenal and the likely sales of MS and JRod. So, I admit it and I apologise to those I described as neg heads. They were right and I was wrong.
I think Little Hitler makes some very good points in his post on this thread. However, I disagree. I am now convinced that KL is not only trying to sell the club but is also first selling off the best ‘assets’, pocketing the cash and then selling the club. All the evidence points to that. KL is a successful business woman. She has no interest in football. SFC is like any other of the Liebherr operations that she controls. When there is a good opportunity to sell to maximise return on investment (ROI), she will do it. There is no emotion in this decision, and certainly no intention to support the wishes of her late father. It’s business. Fact. And the opportunity to get extraordinarily high ROI happened this year when the new Sky TV deal, combined with the additional money for qualifying for Champions League, meant that the big 5 EPL clubs had a lot more money than usual to invest, and were willing to pay well over the odds. Combine that with the UEFA imposing limits of the number of foreigners in the squad for teams competing in Europe, it makes young, ENGLISH talent even more attractive. Everyone, including KL, knew that SFC is the one stop shop for young, English talent.
I believe that as soon as NC resigned, KL made the decision to sell and to maximise her ROI with no thought of the consequences to the club and fans. I think her plan was to draw up a list of current players who could be sold at over market prices and actively sell them off. Les Reed was instructed to do the job and is probably on a ‘bonus’ based on cash raised. I think her plan was to maximise revenue whilst still leaving just enough players from the squad, the Academy and new players in to ensure we remain in the premier league this season. The value of a premiership club being so much higher than one that was relegated. So effectively, she would get 2 bites of the cherry; she makes, say, around £100m net, after player sales and purchases and still sells a Premiership Club, with a world famous academy etc etc for another £100m+. £200m+ is not a bad return on investment. Good business for Liebherr Group. RoKo was brought in, in the full knowledge of the imminent sales of leading players, but still given a decent kitty (say £50m) to bring in his own players to build a team using the remainder of the squad and new youngsters from the Academy. It all fits. Chambers was on the list, Arsenal has shown a previous interest, so Les approached them and said he was available, at the right price of course. Even Wenger admitted it was a risk to spend so much on English potential. But someone like Harrison Reed was not on the list. So sign him up on a L/T contract, to tie him into the ‘new’ club. Of course Les is going to bluster about not wanting to let young talent go, but if they wanted to they could, on Southampton terms. But that is just a bluff to get the highest price and make it appear acceptable to fans. Maybe once or twice, Les, but we have stopped buying that story long ago.
Ralph was clearly brought in to sell the club (what remained). I guess that’s what he is trying to do now and would explain his disappearance act. My guess he has a lot of contacts with US sports franchises, who are prime candidates to buy a EPL team.
The trouble is, this cunning plan is not going to work, IMO. KL is treating our club just like a factory; if you invest enough in the machines (sorry, players), they will produce enough output to keep the side in the premiership. But this shows up her lack of football knowledge. To stay in the premiership you need a team that is fully committed, work as a team and have some pride in the club. But you don’t get these ingredients when the heart has been ripped out of the team but the people who own it and run it. However good RoKo is, he has a real challenge ahead of him this season and we may struggle to survive. I hope I am wrong.
I am not sure whether we have seen the last of NC – possibly not. It would not surprise me in the least if he has teamed up with a mega rich oligarch and bids to buy the club. I am not sure I would welcome that, in the same way that I don’t envy Man. City fans these days. Or maybe NC will join up with his old Argie mucker at Spurs, in some capacity.
I am very disappointed to the lack of investigative reporting from the DE. This is the biggest sporting story in Hampshire for the last 5 years and they have added nothing new. Compare with Ben Smith of the BBC who actually predicted what is happening now more than 6 months ago. I quote from his article of 16th Jan. 2014 entitled What does Cortese Exit mean for Southampton (still on the BBC/Southampton website, by the way). “And yet divisions off the field could not be avoided. Southampton fans will do their best to ignore the thought of the worst case scenario - chairman, manager, star players and ultimately an owner disappearing in a blur.” Shame that a BBC reporter could investigate and conclude that 7 months ago whilst DE reporters are none the wiser than the rest of us.
Frankly, I find this all very depressing. Saints have been hit by a perfect storm of a ruthless business woman wanting to maximise ROI at all costs, and a Football League that is epitomised by greed, TV money, agents, player disloyalty, disrespect of fans and favour for the mega-rich few. When a business sells off one of its operations, there is at least some protection for the employees by company law and trade Union support. However, when a business sells off a football club, there is absolutely no protection for the fans whose money and support used to be the life blood of the club. I can never stop supporting my beloved Saints, but I think I am going to spend more time on other, less tainted pastimes than football.Churchill Saint

I have occasionally posted comments on this forum and have always been in the so-called Happy Clappy camp and have tried to take a very positive view of the situation based on the few facts we know. I never believed the fire-sale/asset stripping arguments and genuinely believed that the loss of MP, RL, AL, LS and DL was part of major restructuring job that KL had decided to implement in the wake of NC’s departure. HOWEVER, I simply could not understand the sale of Chambers to Arsenal and the likely sales of MS and JRod. So, I admit it and I apologise to those I described as neg heads. They were right and I was wrong.

I think Little Hitler makes some very good points in his post on this thread. However, I disagree. I am now convinced that KL is not only trying to sell the club but is also first selling off the best ‘assets’, pocketing the cash and then selling the club. All the evidence points to that. KL is a successful business woman. She has no interest in football. SFC is like any other of the Liebherr operations that she controls. When there is a good opportunity to sell to maximise return on investment (ROI), she will do it. There is no emotion in this decision, and certainly no intention to support the wishes of her late father. It’s bu